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Webster  Family  Library  of  Veterinai'y  Medicin 
Cummings  SgkOoI  of  yeisrinaiy  fviedicine  at 
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North  Grafton,  MA  01536 


The  Hunts  of  the  United  States  and  Canada 


THIS  EDITION,  ON  LAID  PAPER, 
LIMITED  TO  500  COPIES 


THE 

HUNTS 

OF 

THE   UNITED   STATES 
AND   CANADA 

THEIR  MASTERS,   HOUNDS  AND   HISTORIES 


Br 
A.   HENRY   HIGGINSON,   M.  F.  H. 

AND 

JULIAN  INGERSOLL  CHAMBERLAIN 


BOSTON 

FRANK   L.    WILES 

1908 


0^ 


COPYRIGHT.  1908.  BY 

A.    HENRY    HIGGINSON 


Entered  at  Stationers'  Hall,  London,  England 
AU  righU  reserved 


Tvpographu  and  PresUDork  hy 
LOUIS  E.  CROSSCUP  «c  CO..  Bclon.  M«.. 


TO 

"THE  DEAN  OF  AMERICAN  FOX-HUNTING" 

MAJOR  WILLIAM  AUSTIN  WADSWORTH.  M.  F.  H. 

WHO, 

DURING  HIS  THIRTY-TWO  YEARS'  MASTERSHIP  OF  HIS  OWN  PACK, 
HAS  SET  A  HIGH  STANDARD  FOR  THE  RISING  GENERATION. 


T 


Preface 


O  THE  Mastee^  of  the  United  States  and  Canada  and 
TO  THE  Readers  of  this  Volume:— 


Some  years  ago,  the  perusal  of  a  book  edited  by  Sir  Hum- 
phrey F.  de  Trafford,  Bart.,  entitled  "  The  Foxhounds  of  Great  Britain  and 
Ireland,"  led  the  authors  of  this  volume  to  think  that  a  similar  publication, 
which  would  tell  the  histories  of  the  packs  of  the  Western  Hemisphere, 
would  be  welcomed  as  supplying  a  chapter  heretofore  lacking  in  the  annals 
of  the  sport,  and  serve  to  bring  the  hunting  men  and  women  of  both 
countries  into  closer  touch  with  one  another. 

From  Oregon  to  Virginia  is  a  far  cry,  and  no  one  who  has  not  come  in 
personal  contact,  as  it  were,  with  the  Hunts  throughout  the  country  can  re- 
alize the  difficulty  of  getting  together  the  material  for  this  book.  Most  of 
the  packs  have  been  in  existence  a  comparatively  short  time  and  many  of 
them  have  kept  no  records  at  all.  Up  to  the  present  time  no  accurate  list 
even  of  the  Hunts  and  their  Masters  has  been  extant,  and  though  data  con- 
cerning the  more  important  ones  have  been  published  from  time  to  time,  they 
were  so  fragmentary  that  the  authors  venture  to  hope  that  this  volume  will 
prove  useful  to  their  fellow  sportsmen  throughout  the  country. 

We  wish  to  take  this  opportunity  to  thank  the  Masters  of  Hounds  of 
America  and  also  the  Hunt  Secretaries  who  have,  almost  without  exception, 
co-operated  with  us  by  sending  data  and  photographs  and  by  re-reading  and 
correcting  their  respective  articles  before  they  were  sent  to  press.  We  wish 
also  to  tender  our  gratitude  to  the  following  authors  from  whose  writings  we 
have  drawn  much  useful  information  :  — 

Mr.  Ralph  N.  Ellis,  late  Master  of  the  Meadow  Brook,  for  his  article  in 
"  The  Book  of  Sport,"  published  by  Messrs.  J.  F.  Taylor  &  Co.,  Mr.  George 
E.  Darlington,  from  whose  volume,  "  Fox  Hunting  in  Delaware  County,  Penn- 
sylvania," many  important  items  have  been  gleaned.  Captain  E.  Pennell-Elm- 
hirst  ("Brooksby")  for  his  chapter  in  "The  Best  of  the  Fun,"  on  the  Meadow 


PREFACE 

Brook  in  the  old  days,  and  Mr.  Allen  Potts,  Editor  of  the  Richmond  Times- 
Dispatch,  for  much  information  about  the  southern  Hunts. 

In  addition  to  these,  our  cordial  thanks  are  due  to  the  following  gentlemen 
for  assistance  cheerfully  given: — 

Dr.  Charles  McEachran,  late  Master  of  the  Montreal,  who,  together  with 
its  present  Master,  has  aided  us  in  compiling  the  history  of  that  oldest  of 
American  Hunts,  Mr.  Hugh  Allan  and  Mr.  Frank  Seabury,  late  Masters 
of  the  Myopia,  for  valuable  information  of  its  early  days,  Mr.  J.  L.  Randall 
for  his  poem,  "  The  Goose  with  the  Golden  Eggs,"  which  appeared  in  "  The 
History  of  the  Meynell  Hounds  and  Country,"  published  by  Messrs.  Samp- 
son Low,  Marston  &  Co.,  Mr.  Charles  Hopkinson  and  Mr.  Richard 
Newton,  Jr.,  M.  F.  H.,  for  their  permission  to  reproduce  portraits  painted 
by  them  and,  finally,  to  Messrs.  J.  E.  Green,  A.  F.  Bradley  and  W.  N. 
Jennings  for  the  use  of  valuable  sporting  photographs. 

We  would  add  that  in  the  few  instances  where  no  photograph  of  either 
the  Master  of  a  pack  or  of  his  Huntsman  appears,  the  omission  is  due  solely 
to  that  Master  himself,  every  opportunity  having  been  afforded  him  to  fur- 
nish the  necessary  portraits  for  reproduction  in  these  pages.  If  any  Hunt 
has  been  omitted  from  this  volume  it  is  for  the  same  reason,  but  the  authors 
feel  that  in  giving  it  to  the  public  they  are  offering  the  only  accurate  publi- 
cation of  its  kind  in  America. 

In  conclusion  the  authors,  both  being  hunting  men,  feel  that  if  their  fellow 
fox-hunters  derive  half  as  much  pleasure  out  of  the  reading  of  this  book  as 
they  have  in  the  writing  of  it,  they  will  rest  content. 

A.  HENRY  HIGGINSON. 

JULIAN  INGERSOLL  CHAMBERLAIN. 

South  Lincoln,  Mass.,   1 908. 


Note  :     The  change  in  the  name  of  the  Charlottesville  Hunt  to  the  Albemarle  County  Hunt,  recently 
made,  occuned  too  late  to  be  noted  in  the  chapter  on  that  organization. 


Contents 


Preface VH 

Introduction           ...........  XVII 

TTie  Berkshire  Hunt            ..........  I 

The  Blackstone  Valley  Hunt 4 

The  Blue  Ridge  Hunt        ..........  6 

The  Blue  Run  Hunt 8 

TTie  Brandywine  Hounds             .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .  10 

The  Castle  Hill  Hounds 15 

The  Charlottesville  Hunt    ..........  17 

The  Chester  Valley  Hunt 19 

TTie  Chevy  Chase  Hunt     .  .  .         .         .21 

The  Deep  Run  Hunt    ..........  25 

The  Elkridge  Hunt 28 

The  Endean  Beagles     ..........  31 

TTie  Essex  Hounds             ..........  33 

The  Genesee  Valley  Hunt     .........  36 

The  Grafton  Hounds          ..........  43 

The  Green  River  Hunt          ..'......  48 

The  Green  Spring  Valley  Hunt           .         .         .         .         .         .         .         .  50 

The  Harkaway  Hunt    ..........  55 

The  Iroquois  Hunt     .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .57 

The  Keswick  Hunt 59 

The  Lima  Hunt         ...........  62 

The  London  Hunt         ..........  64 

The  Loudoun  County  Hunt        .........  67 

The  Meadow  Brook  Hunt     .........  72 

The  Middleburg  Hunt 8! 

The  Middlesex  Foxhounds     .........  83 

The  Midlothian  Hunt  Club 89 

The  Millbrook  Hunt 91 

The  Millwood  and  Owl's  Nest  Hounds 93 

The  Missouri  Hunt  and  Polo  Club 97 

The  Monmouth  County  Hunt     .          .         .         .         .         '         .         .         .  I  GO 

The  Montreal  Hunt 1 03 


IX 


CONTENTS 

Mr.  Hitchcock's  Hounds 113 

Mr.  Maddux's  Hounds 117 

Mr.  Okie's  Hounds 119 

The  Myopia  Hunt 121 

The  Norfolk  Hunt 127 

The  Oak  Ridge  Hunt  Club 131 

TTie  Onwentsia  Hunt  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  1 34 

The  Oramge  County  Hunt      .         .         •         .         .         .         .         .         .  137 

The  Patapsco  Hunt 140 

The  Piedmont  Hunt 1 44 

The  Portland  Hunt  Club 1 46 

The  Portsmouth  Hunt 148 

The  Radnor  Hunt 150 

The  Riverside  Hunt      .         .         .         •         .         .         .         .         .         .  157 

The  Rose  Tree  Fox  Hunting  Club     .         .         .         .         .         .         .         .  1 59 

The  Shelbume  Hounds  .........  1 66 

The  Smithtown  Hunt         .         .         .         .         .         .         .         .         .         .  1 68 

The  Suffolk  Hounds 1 70 

The  Tomahawk  Hunt        .         .         .         .  .         .         .         .         .  1 72 

The  Toronto  Hunt 1 74 

The  Upland  Hunt 177 

The  Warrenton  Hunt 1 80 

The  Watchung  Hunt 183 

The  Westchester  County  Hunt       .         .         .         .         .         .         .         .  187 

The  White  Marsh  Valley  Hunt 190 

"  The  Goose  with  the  Golden  Eggs "      .         .         .         .         .         .         .  195 


List  of  Illustrations 


"  Huntsman's  Coming  " Frontispiece 

"Full  Cry."  Montreal  Hunt,  1852 XVII 

John  Crawford,  Esq XVIII 

A.  Baumgarten,  Esq.              XX 

BERKSHIRE 

David  T.  Dana,  Esq.,  M.  F.  H 1 

D.  Somerville,  Huntsman       .........  1 

Autumn  Steeplechases,  1 905      .........  2 

BLACKSTONE  VALLEY 

Paul  Whitin.  Esq.,  M.  F.  H 4 

BLUE  RIDGE 

Edward  Gay  Butler,  Esq..  M.  F.  H 6 

BLUE  RUN 

James  N.  Andrews,  Esq.,  M.  F.  H 8 

BRANDYWINE 

Charles  E.  Mather.  Esq.,  M.  F.  H 10 

Hunt  Staff  and  Hounds 12 

CASTLE  HILL 

Mrs.  Allen  Potts.  M.  F.  H 15 

CHARLOTTESVILLE 

The  Field.  April  9,  1908 17 

CHESTER  VALLEY 

R.  Penn  Smith.  Esq.,  M.  F.  H 19 

CHEVY  CHASE 

Clarence  Moore,  Esq.,  M.  F.  H. 21 

R.  Curran,  Huntsman        ..........  2 1 

Robert  Neville,  Esq.               22 

Charles  H.  L.  Johnston,  Esq 24 

DEEP  RUN 

J.  St.  George  Bryan,  Esq.,  M.  F.  H 26 

ELKRIDGE 

Alexander  Brown,  Esq.     ..........  28 

T.  Swann  Latrobe,  Esq.        .........  28 

Edward  A   Jackson,  Esq.,  M.  F.  H 30 

Leo  Gardell,  Huntsman         .......••  30 

xi 


LIST    OF    ILLUSTRATIONS 

ENDEAN 
The  Master,  Hunt  Staff  and  Hounds 32 

ESSEX 

Charles  Pfizer,  Esq.,  M.  F.  H 34 

Hunt  Staff  and  Hounds 34 

On  the  Way  Home 34 

GENESEE  VALLEY 

Major  W.  Austin  Wadsworth,  M.  F.  H 36 

James  Blower,  Huntsman,  and  Hounds,  1 898  .....  38 

A  Morning  in  Kennels      ..........         40 

GIMFTON 

Harry  W.  Smith,  Esq..  M.  F.  H 44 

GREEN   RIVER 
Frank  Sherman  Peer,  Esq.,  M.  F.  H 48 

GREEN  SPRING  VALLEY 

Redmond  C.  Stewart,  Esq.,  M.  F.  H. 50 

HARKAWAY 

Frank  M.  Lowry,  Esq.,  M.  F.  H 55 

Going  to  Cover   ...........  55 

IROQUOIS 
Brigadier-General  Roger  D.  Williams,  M.  F.  H 57 

KESWICK 
Hunt  Staff  and  Hounds 60 

LIMA 
The  Master,  Hunt  Staff  and  Hounds 62 

LONDON 

Adam  Beck,  Esq.,  M.  F.  H.,  and  Hunt  Staff 64 

W.  Edwards 66 

LOUDOUN 
Westmoreland  Davis,  Esq.,  M.  F.  H 68 

MEADOW   BROOK 

F.  Gray  Griswold,  Esq.  .........  '2 

Ra  ph  N.  Ellis.  Esq.  72 

Samuel  Willets,  Esq.,  M.  F.  H 74 

Robert  Cotesworth       ........-•  76 

Michael  Hanlon,  Huntsman        .........  '6 

Hunt  Staff  and  Hounds 78 

The  Hounds 78 

zii 


LIST    OF    ILLUSTRATIONS 

MIDDLEBURG 

Claude  Hatcher,  Huntsman.            ........  81 

MIDDLESEX 

A.  Henry  Higginson,  Esq.,  M.  F.  H 83 

The  Pack  and  Hunt  Staff 84 

Ned  Cotesworth,  Kennel  Huntsmjui    ........  84 

The  Pack,  1908 86 

MIDLOTHIAN 

J.  L.  Stack,  Esq.,  M.  F.  H 89 

MILLBROOK 

Dr.  M.  O'Malley  Knott,  Hon.  Huntsman 91 

MILLWOOD  AND  OWLS  NEST 

Robert  Forbes  Perkins,  Esq.,  M.  F.  H 94 

MISSOURI 

Dr.  St.  Clair  Streett,  M.  F.  H 97 

Hunt  Staff  and  Hounds 98 

MONMOUTH  COUNTY 

P.  F.  Collier,  Esq.,  M.  F.  H 100 

Edgar  Caffyn,  Huntsman                       .          .          .          .          .          .          .          .  1 00 

The  M.  F.  H.  and  Hounds 102 

MONTREAL 

Hugh  Paton,  Esq.              104 

Sir  H.  Montagu  Allan 104 

George  Hooper,  Esq.  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .106 

Dr.  Charles  McEachran 1 06 

William  R.  Miller,  Esq.               108 

Will  Nicholls,  Huntsman 108 

The  Master,  Hunt  Staff  and  Hounds,  1908 110 

MR.   HITCHCOCK'S 

Thomas  Hitchcock,  Jr.,  Esq.,  M.  F.  H. 114 

MR.   MADDUX'S 

James  K.  Maddux,  Esq.,  M.  F.  H.                                 117 

MR.    OKIE'S 

F.  W.  Okie,  Esq.,  M.  F.  H 119 

MYOPIA 

Hugh  A.  Allan,  Esq 121 

Frank  Seabury,  Esq.                          .          .          .                    .          .          .          .  121 

Joe  Barrar,  Kennel  Huntsmaui     .........  122 

Summer  Exercise           ..........  122 

The  Pack,  1908 124 

xiii 


LIST    OF    ILLUSTRATIONS 
NORFOLK 

Henry  G.  Vaughan  Esq..  M.  F.  H )27 

Hunt  Staff  and  Hounds 1 28 

A.  McGregor,  Kennel  Huntsman  .......  1 28 

A  Bird's-eye  View  from  the  Clubhouse  .  .  .  .130 

OAK   RIDGE 

J.  M.  B.  Lewis,  Esq.,  M.  F.  H 132 

The  Hunt  Staff,  1908 132 

ONWENTSIA 

Arthur  T.  Aldis,  Esq. 134 

W.  Vernon  Booth,  Esq.  1 34 

James  F.  Lord,  Esq..  M.  F.  H 1  34 

ORANGE  COUNTY 

John  R.  Townsend,  Esq.,  M.  F.  H 137 

The  Orange  County  Pack  ........  1 38 

PIEDMONT 

Colonel  Richard  Hunter  Dulany,  late  Master        .  .  .  .  .  .  1 44 

PORTLAND 

T.  S.  McGrath.  Esq.,  M.  F.  H 146 

PORTSMOUTH 

Dr.  Arthur  Cowton  Heffenger,  M.  F.  H.  148 

Master  Charles  P.  Heffenger,  Hon.  Whipper-in  .  148 

Two  Couples  of  the  Portsmouth  Hounds  .         .         .  .  .  .  1 48 

RADNOR 

W.  Hinckle  Smith,  Esq.,  M.  F,  H 150 

John  R.  Valentine,  Esq.  .  .  .  .  .  .  .152 

The  Master,  Hunt  Staff  and  Hounds,  1 906 154 

RIVERSIDE 

LeRoy  Roper,  Esq.,  M.  F.  H 157 

M.  C.  Jackson,  Esq.,  Hon.  Huntsman     .  .  .  .  .  .  .  157 

ROSE  TREE 

General  Edward  Morrell  .         .  .  .         .  .  .  .  .  1 60 

Going  to  Cover    ...........  1 62 

The  Pack ....  162 

Talking  it  Over 1 64 

SHELBURNE 

J.  Watson  Webb,  Esq.,  M.  F.  H .  .  166 

H.  Hopkins,  Kennel  Huntsman      .....  .  .  166 

Hunt  Staff  and  Hounds .         .  1 66 

xiv 


LIST    OF    ILLUSTRATIONS 

SMITHTOWN 
Clarence  H.  Robbins,  Esq.,  M.  F.  H 1 68 

SUFFOLK 

Richard  Newton.  Jr..  Esq..  M.  F.  H 170 

TOMAHAWK 
WaUace  W.  Sanford,  Esq.,  M.  F.  H I  72 

UPLAND 

Edward  Crozer,  Esq.,  M.  F.  H 177 

A  Morning  Meet  1  78 

A  Good  Litter 1 78 

WARRENTON 

F.  A.  B.  Portman,  Esq..  late  Master 180 

"  A  Good  'un  to  Follow "         .         .         .         .         .         .         .  .       1 82 

WATCHUNG 

Lewis  E.  Waring,  Esq.,  M.  F.  H.,  and  Hounds 184 

Hunt  Staff  and  pack 1 86 

WESTCHESTER 
Eugene  S.  Reynal,  Esq.,  M.  F.  H 188 

WHITE  MARSH  VALLEY 

Welsh  Strawbridge,  Esq.,  M.  F.  H.             ...  ...       190 

J.  G.  Leiper,  Jr..  Esq.,  Hon.  Huntsman           .          .  ...            190 

Going  to  Cover                 .                           .         .         .  .         •         •         .190 

Well  Over ...            190 


CO 


y.  S 


O  w 

"I 


Introduction 


HUNTING  in  America,  to-day,  is  far  more  popular  than  many 
people  imagine,  and  that  it  is  becoming  more  so  is  clearly 
evinced  by  the  great  number  of  Hunts  which  are  organized 
each  year.  Throughout  Virginia  and  Pennsylvania,  hunting  has  always 
been  a  favorite  sport,  and  packs  of  hounds,  usually  of  the  "  trencher-fed  " 
variety,  have  been  maintained  since  early  in  the  eighteenth  century;  but  the 
formation  of  regular  organizations  for  the  purpose  of  hunting  is,  for  the  most 
part,  a  thing  of  the  last  thirty  years.  True  it  is,  that  the  Brooklyn  Hunt 
Club  seems  to  have  existed  in  1  781  ;  and  that  the  Gloucester  Fox  Hunting 
Club  dates  from  I  766 ;  but  except  for  these  two,  and  the  Montreal  Hunt 
of  Canada,  which  was  founded  in  1 826,  we  find  no  regular  packs  kept  up 
till  the  early  seventies.  To-day  there  are  fifty-six  packs  of  hounds  regularly 
maintained  for  the  purpose  of  fox-  or  drag-hunting,  either  by  hunt  clubs  or 
private  individuals.  When  we  say  there  are  fifty-six,  we  do  not  mean  to 
infer,  for  an  instant,  that  this  includes  all  the  private  or  even  subscription  packs. 
On  the  contrary,  there  are  doubtless  many  small  packs  in  Virginia  and  else- 
where that  have  either  sprung  up  recently,  or  have  been  rejuvenated,  of 
which  we  have  no  knowledge ;  but  these  packs  are  so  constantly  changing 
ownership  and  so  little  record  has  been  kept  of  their  history  that  it  has  been 
impossible  to  include  them  in  this  volume.  In  parts  of  Virginia  and  Penn- 
sylvania, almost  every  family  "  keeps  hounds,"  and  these  join  with  one  another 
in  showing  the  best  of  sport  in  many  instances. 

Fox-hunting  in  America  is  almost  contemporary  vsHith  fox-hunting  in  Eng- 
land, but  the  development  in  England  has  been  much  more  rapid,  and  the 
whole  game  has  been  carried  out  on  a  much  more  scientific  basis  than  in  the 
United  States  and  Canada.  This  hardly  seems  the  place  to  go  into  the 
question  in  detail  of  the  respective  merits  of  the  foxhound  as  he  is  produced 
in  England  and  in  America  to-day.  The  question  is  one  on  which  various 
writers  differ  widely ;  but  at  the  same  time  it  is  a  question  of  so  much  in- 


INTRODUCTION 

terest  to  the  hunting  man  of  to-day  that  we  feel  constrained  to  put  certain 
facts  before  the  readers  of  this  book,  most  of  whom,  we  are  well  aware,  will 
differ  with  us  in  their  final  conclusions. 

The  conditions  in  England  differ  widely  from  those  in  America  in  the 
following  particulars :  first,  in  the  quality  of  the  climate,  which  makes  a  dif- 
ference in  the  scenting  conditions ;  second,  in  the  conformation  of  the  country 
hunted  over ;  third,  in  the  nature  of  the  quarry,  and  fourth,  in  the  method  of 
hunting  it. 

To  take  up  the  differences  singly  —  the  climate  of  England  is  such  that  the 
ground  is  apt  to  be  in  a  much  damper  condition  than  that  of  America ;  and 
being  so,  scent  "  lies  "  better  and  hounds  do  not  require  such  tenderness  of 
nose  as  some  scenting  conditions  in  America  seem  to  require.  Second,  the 
conformation  of  the  average  hunting  country  in  England  is  such  that  it  is 
easier  for  a  Field  to  follo%v  hounds  than  in  America.  Third,  foxes  in  Eng- 
land are  much  more  plentiful  and,  in  our  opinion,  much  less  wild  than  in 
America.  In  England  foxes  are  protected  by  popular  feeling,  and  cared  for 
from  birth,  to  a  certain  degree,  whereas  in  America,  or  at  any  rate  in  the 
greater  portion  of  it,  the  fox  is  considered  vermin  and  has  to  shift  for  himself 
from  the  first.  On  the  other  hand,  foxes  in  England  are  hunted  more  amd, 
by  reason  of  the  earth-stopping,  cannot  go  to  ground,  and  must  run  for  their 
lives.  Finally,  we  come  to  the  fourth  and  last  point  of  difference ;  the  method 
of  pursuing  the  sport.  How  does  the  average  American  huntsman  set  to 
work  ?  He  goes  out  at  daybreak  and  draws,  not  coverts,  but  fields  —  open 
fields  —  till  some  one  of  his  hounds  hits  on  a  "feed-trail,"  perhaps  five  or  six 
hours  old.  The  hound  promptly  gives  tongue  —  the  rest  of  the  pack  may 
hark  in  to  him  or  they  may  not,  according  to  their  taste  (a  bad  trait  in  the 
American  hound);  and  in  any  case  they  go  on  hunting  along  at  two  miles 
an  hour  till  they  "  jump "  their  fox ;  or  if,  as  is  often  the  case,  he  has  gone 
on  they  keep  at  it  all  day.  Very  different  this,  from  the  other  method, 
where  one  either  draws  a  covert  blank  and  goes  on  to  draw  again ;  or  finds 
and  gets  a  run. 

Now  then,  having  stated  these  facts,  which  are  conceded  by  all  hound- 
men,  let  us  take  a  look  at  the  situation.     If  a  man  wants  to  go  out  and  sit 


JOHN  CRAWFORD,    ESQ.,   M.F.H. 

Three  times  Master  of  the  Montreal  Hunt 

rroni  a  Painting  presented  by  the  past  and  present  members.  iSyo 


INTRODUCTION 

still  on  a  horse  on  some  hill-top  and  bear  his  hounds  work  and,  by  riding 
from  point  to  point,  watch  them  as  they  pass  him  and  let  them  do  all  the 
work,  let  him,  by  all  means,  stick  to  the  American  hound  with  his  tender 
nose  and  free  tongue.  His  hounds  may  be  throwing  their  tongues  on  a  line 
four  hours  old,  or  it  may  be  the  line  of  a  hare  or  some  other  riot,  he  can't  tell, 
but  he  won't  know;  and  this  is  one  of  the  cases  "where  ignorance  is  bliss." 
Nay,  we'll  admit  that  often  they  may  be  right,  and  that  if  he  is  a  riding  man 
and  cares  to,  he'll  often  have  a  cracking  run  and  kill  his  fox  —  so  he  would 
if  he  had  drawn  his  covert  as  an  Englishman  would  with  English  hounds ;  be- 
side saving  a  lot  of  time  while  hounds  were  "towling"  away  on  that  cold  line. 
But  if  he  wants  to  get  a  day's  hunting  as  many  men  enjoy  it  most;  if  he  wants 
to  see  hounds  and  huntsman  work  together,  help  each  other  like  good  parts 
of  a  well-built  machine,  then  let  him  go  out  with  English  hounds,  let  him  see 
them  draw  their  coverts  and  find  their  fox,  and  force  him  out,  and  on,  at  such 
a  pace  that  it  takes  a  good  horse  and  a  stout-hearted  man  to  stay  with  them. 
Perhaps  they'll  lose  him  if  the  scent  is  bad,  or  some  unforeseen  occurrence 
presents  itself — perhaps  they'll  put  him  to  ground  and  perhaps  they'll  kill  him 
in  the  open.  In  any  case  they'll  have  a  good  day's  sport  and  our  friend  will 
know  they  are  hunting  a  fox. 

What  does  the  supporter  of  the  American  hound  claim  to  be  the  ad- 
vantages of  that  hybrid  animal  ?  Better  nose  ?  Granted ;  it  is  so  tender 
that  its  owner  is  forever  telling  us  of  a  line  that  may  be  far  too  old  to  hunt. 
More  independence  ?  Granted ;  and  to  such  an  extent  that  the  average 
American  hound  will  hunt  a  cat,  or  a  cur  dog,  or  anything  else  that  crosses 
its  path.  English  hounds  are  keen  enough  if  only  they  are  let  alone. 
More  speed  ?  Granted ;  for  a  mile  or  so  till  their  weak  loins  and  open  feet 
give  out.  More  voice?  Granted;  to  babble  with.  How  else  does  it  aid 
them,  if  their  huntsman  is  riding  up  ? 

We  are  not  going  to  enumerate  the  good  qualities  of  the  English  hound ; 
it  would  take  too  much  time.  We'll  only  say  this.  Four  of  the  packs 
enumerated  in  this  volume  —  packs  whose  owners  have  gone  to  quite  a  bit 
of  expense  to  get  the  best  —  use  pure-blooded  English  hounds.  All  four 
Masters  and  their  huntsmen  agree  on  one  pomt  —  i.  e.  that  in  order  to  get 


INTRODUCTION 

the  best  results  from  their  hounds  they  have  been  forced  to  rely,  not  on  the 
imported  draft-hound,  but  on  the  home-bred  product ;  bred  from  imported 
pure-blooded  stock,  which  is  not  like  the  imported  hound  sent  away  for 
some  fault.  Suppose,  gentlemen,  Masters  of  American  packs,  an  English- 
man comes  over  and  buys  your  culls,  and  then  takes  them  to  England  and  tries 
them  out  against  the  Quorn  and  the  Pytchley  and  the  Bel  voir  ?  Is  that 
fair  ?  No,  —  give  Englishmen  their  due.  At  some  things  we  excell  them 
—  they'll  admit  it  —  but  not  at  hound  breeding.     They  have  a  long  start. 

We  have  been  led  into  a  much  fuller  discussion  of  the  hound  question 
than  we  had  intended,  but  must  ask  the  forbearance  of  our  readers  for  tak- 
ing this  opportunity  to  make  certain  statements  which  will  be,  perhaps,  of 
some  interest  to  lovers  of  the  Foxhound,  both  English  and  American. 

During  the  last  thirty  years,  there  has  been  a  tremendous  growth  of 
hunting.  Organizations  have  sprung  up  all  through  the  United  States  and 
Canada,  and  already  the  western  states  are  beginning  to  show  an  interest  in 
the  sport.  To  such  Englishmen  as  may  read  this  book,  the  scale  on  which 
hunting  is  carried  on  here  as  compared  with  England  will  seem  very  small. 
To  them  we  would  say  that  they  must  remember  that  hunting  in  America, 
while  not  in  its  infancy,  is,  as  it  is  practised  in  England,  at  least  in  its 
adolescence.  Many  an  old  fox  hunter  in  America  has  hunted  from  the 
road  in  his  buggy,  as  was  the  case  with  Messrs.  Skinner  and  Donahue  of 
Hackensack ;  and  many  of  the  farmers  who  do  not  usually  rent  their  land, 
but  own  it,  are  at  a  loss  to  understand  why  a  lot  of  men  in  scarlet  coats 
should  find  amusement  in  riding  over  it,  or  why  they,  the  owners,  should 
allow  it.  We  know  one  member  of  Concord  society,  the  son  of  a  distin- 
guished poet  and  himself  a  graduate  of  Harvard  University,  who  considers 
hunting  a  "Godless  custom,"  and  will  not  have  hounds  on  his  land  at  any 
price. 

Another  thing  that  will  astonish  our  brothers  over  the  water  is  the  great 
number  of  drag-packs  which  are  kept  up.  The  reason  for  this  is  two-fold. 
First,  there  are  many  countries  where  a  good  drag  can  be  laid,  but  in  which 
it  is  pretty  difficult  to  hunt  foxes,  owing  to  the  size  of  the  coverts  and  the 
superabundance  of  wire.     Second,  there  are  many  men  who  are  often  able 


INTRODUCTION 

to  devote  a  few  hours,  two  or  three  times  a  week,  to  drag-hunting,  but 
who  would  not  take  the  time  away  from  their  business  to  put  in  a  day's  fox- 
hunting. Still,  fox-hunting,  we  are  happy  to  say,  is  on  the  increase,  and  several 
drag-packs  have  given  up  that  form  of  sport  and  taken  to  "The  Noble  Science." 
Just  one  more  word.  The  question  of  good  looks  has  always  been  one 
of  too  little  significance  to  the  American  hunting  man.  "  Give  me  a  pack 
of  pointers,"  said  the  Master  of  an  American  pack  once,  "  if  they'll  hunt  a 
fox."  It  is  this  spirit  that  has  helped  to  injure  the  American  hound  in 
looks.  In  late  years,  however,  more  attention  has  been  paid  to  this  matter, 
and  the  inauguration  of  a  National  Hound  Show  similar  to  one  held  at 
Peterboro,  England,  has  had  the  result  of  a  distinct  improvement  in  the 
general  looks  and  conformation  of  hounds.  A  hound  can  work  just  as  well  if 
he  is  good  looking  —  that  is  one  of  the  many  points  where  England  is  ahead 
of  us  in  hound  breeding.  It  will  be  years  before  we  can  produce  such 
hounds  as  our  fellow-sportsmen  and  cousins  over  the  water,  but  it  can't  hurt 
us  to  try. 


»^?as-«'»---'?«^        >:fNVi^ 


The  Berkshire  Hunt 


DISTINCTIVE  COLLAR Green 

EVENING  DRESS Scarlet  coat,  green  facings 

MASTER David  T.  Dana,  Esq. 

SECRETARY Charles  Astor  Bristed,  Esq.,  Lenox,  Mass. 

HUNTSMAN - The  Master 

KENNEL  HUNTSMAN David  Somerville 

WHIPPERS-IN i  1"^  ^^'^^ 

(  2nd,  Peterson 

HOUNDS 1 4  couples.  English 

KENNELS  AND  POST-OFFICE Lenox,  Mass. 

DAYS  OF  MEETING    Tuesday  and  Saturday 

LENGTH  OF  SEASON September  I  st  to  December  1st 


IN  the  spring  of  1903,  a  few  gentlemen  who  spent  the  summer  and 
autumn  months  in  Berkshire  County,  Massachusetts,  of  whom  the 
moving  spirit  was  the  late  Arthur  Sturgis  Dixey,  Esq.,  decided  to  es- 
tablish a  small  pack  of  draghounds,  to  be  supported  by  subscription  from  the 
summer  residents  living  in  and  about  Lenox.  Mr.  Dixey,  being  aware  that 
Mr.  A.  H.  Higginson,  with  whom  he  happened  to  be  acquainted,  was  giving 
up  a  pack  of  beagles  which  had  shown  very  good  sport  after  a  drag  in 
Middlesex  County,  headed  a  committee  which,  after  visiting  the  kennels, 
eventually  purchased  the  entire  pack. 

Starting  in  this  small  way,  the  Berkshire  Hunt  has  grown,  until  now  it  has 
been  recognized  by  the  National  Steeplechase  and  Hunt  Association  and 
has  a  large  following. 

The  beagles  soon  proved  to  be  too  slow  to  please  the  Field,  owing  to  the 
character  of  the  country,  in  which  stone  walls  and  snake  fences  predominate ; 

1 


THE    BERKSHIRE 

and  the  first  Master,  Clinton  Gilmore,  Esq.,  soon  found  it  necessary  to  give 
up  the  beagles  and  procure  a  draft  of  English  foxhounds.  Some  of  these 
came  from  the  well-known  Meadow  Brook  pack  on  Long  Island,  while  others 
were  recruited  from  the  kennels  of  the  Myopia  Hunt  at  Hamilton. 

Mr.  Gilmore  did  his  best  to  induce  the  Field  to  give  at  least  part  of  the 
time  to  fox-hunting;  but  the  frequent  occurrence  of  wire,  the  bane  of  all 
Masters  in  America,  made  it  next  to  impossible,  and  the  project  was  aban- 
doned wath  reluctance  for  the  time  being. 

In  the  spring  of  1905,  the  Master's  health  forced  him  to  resign,  as  he 
found  that  the  task  was  too  great  for  him,  and  the  present  Master,  David  T. 
Dana,  Esq.,  was  elected  in  his  stead. 

During  the  summer,  a  draft  of  ten  couples  of  hounds  was  imported  from 
England,  coming  partly  from  the  Warwickshire  and  partly  from  the  Pytch- 
ley,  and  with  these  as  a  foundation,  the  huntsman,  David  Somerville,  late  of 
the  Grafton,  has  been  able  to  breed  a  fast  and  fairly  level  pack. 

At  present,  there  are  fourteen  couples  of  hounds  in  the  kennels,  and 
the  Hunt  Staff  consists  of  the  Master,  who  hunts  the  hounds  himself; 
David  Somerville,  kennel  huntsman,  and  two  whippers-in,  Wilde  and 
Peterson. 

The  Master  formerly  took  hounds  out  but  two  days  a  week  on  the  drag; 
but  during  the  season  of  1 907,  fox-hunting  was  inaugurated,  with  fair  suc- 
cess. At  the  beginning,  the  main  objection  to  this  better  form  of  sport  was 
as  has  been  said,  the  prevalence  of  wire  fencing  throughout  the  country,  but 
a  Wire  Fund  being  established  in  1 905,  and  during  the  last  two  seasons 
being  generously  contributed  to,  all  the  fences  in  the  hunting  country  are  now 
carefully  panelled,  owing  to  the  universal  co-operation  of  the  farmers ;  which 
enables  the  Field  to  follow  hounds  wherever  they  go.  In  later  years,  per- 
haps, the  Berkshire  M.  F.  H.  will  become  as  keen  on  fox-hunting  as  he  now 
is  at  the  drag  game,  and  of  course  this  wall  mean  more  hounds,  of  better 
quality,  and  an  eventual  abandonment  of  drag-hunting,  as  has  been  the  case 
in  another  Massachusetts  Hunt,  the  Middlesex. 

The  country  hunted  consists,  for  the  most  part,  of  rolling  pastures,  inter- 
spersed with  the  well-cultivated  estates  of  the  summer  residents.     The  atti- 

2 


THE    BERKSHIRE 

hide  of  the  landowners  is  eJl  that  could  be  desired,  and  the  Hunt  is  growing 
in  popularity  with  them  each  year. 

In  return  for  the  courtesy  shown  the  Hunt  by  the  farmers,  a  Breakfast  is 
tendered  annually  at  the  residence  of  some  one  of  the  wealthy  summer  col- 
ony, who  are  almost  all  members  of  the  Hunt,  to  the  farmers  over  whose 
land  the  Hunt  rides.  At  this  time,  also,  is  held  the  annual  Horse  Show,  the 
programme  of  which  always  includes  classes  for  farmers'  horses,  with  large 
cash  prizes.  The  sport-loving  residents  of  Lenox  and  the  neighboring  towns 
have  joined  the  hunting  fraternity  in  all  their  projects  and,  during  the  past 
four  years,  a  small  race  meeting  has  been  inaugurated,  which  is  now  held 
under  the  auspices  of  the  National  Steeplechase  and  Hunt  Association. 
These  meetings,  starting  at  first  with  practically  local  entries  only,  have  grown 
to  such  proportions  that  in  1907  there  were  seven  races,  with  a  total  of 
seventy-eight  entries.  This  spirit  of  steady  improvement  has  marked  all  the 
proceedings  of  the  Hunt,  and  great  things  are  to  be  anticipated  in  the  future. 


The  Blackstone  Valley  Hunt 


DISTINCTIVE  UNIFORM Dark  blue  coat,  hunt  buttons 

MASTER Paul  Whitin,  Esq. 

SECRETARY E.  Kent  Swih,  Esq..  Whitinsville.  Mass. 

HUNTSMAN The  Master 

KENNEL  HUNTSMAN - George  Davies 

HOUNDS 1  1   couples,  American 

KENNELS  AND  POST  OFFICE Northbridge.  Mass. 

DAYS  OF  MEETING Wednesday  and  Saturday 

LENGTH  OF  SEASON October   Ist  to  February  I  si 


IN  the  autumn  of  1 906,  the  Messrs.  Paul  Whitin,  James  E.  Whitin  and 
Leon  W.  Campbell,  decided  to  try  the  experiment  of  putting  together 
a  number  of  hounds  which  each  owned,  as  a  scratch  pack.  Invita- 
tions were  sent  to  a  number  of  their  friends,  making  regular  fixtures  for 
meets  for  a  month,  and  arranging  for  Hunt  Breakfasts  at  their  various  estates 
on  some  of  the  days  of  meeting.  Mr.  Paul  Whitin,  who  had  had  a  good 
deal  of  experience  with  foxhounds,  having  been  honorary  whipper-in  to  Mr. 
Smith's  pack  (the  Grafton)  until  1 905,  carried  the  horn  himself  and  man- 
aged to  show  such  good  sport  that  the  meets  proved  much  more  popular 
than  had  been  anticipated;  the  enthusiasm  aroused  ultimately  leading  to  the 
formation  of  the  Blackstone  Valley  Hunt  in  January  of  1 907.  Mr.  Whitin 
was,  as  a  matter  of  course,  elected  M.  F.  H.  and,  considering  the  short  time 
in  which  he  has  had  the  hounds,  has  developed  a  very  fair  working  pack. 

The  Master  is  a  rabid  American  hound  man,  whom  no  amount  of  argu- 
ment can  stir  from  his  conviction  that  English  hounds  are  absolutely  unsuited 
to  New  England  fox-hunting  conditions.  The  following  statement  quoted 
from  a  letter  to  the  authors,  shows  his  position  quite  clearly:     "  We  use 

4 


PAUL  WHITIN,    ESQ.,   M.F.H, 


THE    BLACKSTONE    VALLEY 

American  hounds  entirely,  as  we  find  that,  with  careful  training,  they  can 
be  handled  about  as  easily  as  English.  So  many  parts  of  our  country  are 
either  unrideable,  or  so  rough,  and  a  horse's  pace  through  them  is  necessarily 
so  very  slow,  that  we  need  hounds  which  will  hunt  by  themselves,  as  it  is  quite 
impossible  to  stay  with  them.  We  have  not  been  breeding  very  extensively 
as  yet,  but  have  had  fair  results  with  what  we  have  undertaken. 

"Some  of  our  hounds  were  bred  from  a  strain  which  Mr.  Campbell  has 
developed  along  lines  of  his  own  for  a  number  of  years ;  some  of  them  are 
from  the  South,  and  we  find  that  those  from  the  Walkers  in  Kentucky  give 
the  best  all-round  results  of  any  we  have  bought. 

"We  also  find  that  the  Campbell  hounds,  which  have  a  distant  cross  on 
the  old-fashioned  New  England  foxhound,  have  very  keen  noses  and  are 
very  useful  on  dry,  windy,  poor-scenting  days,  when  Southern  hounds  are 
relatively  at  a  disadvantage." 

The  country  over  which  the  Blackstone  Valley  Hounds  hunt  is  rather 
rough  and  wooded  and  there  is  also  a  good  deal  of  swamp-land.  The 
big  woodlands  are  fairly  rideable,  and  most  of  the  open  fields  are  bounded 
by  stone  walls  which  are  usually  rather  low,  but  as  the  land  is  apt  to  be 
very  rough  on  either  side  of  them,  the  jumping  is  extremely  trappy  and  the 
horses  which  go  best  are  very  quiet  and  clever  jumpers.  A  hot  horse  is 
really  dangerous  in  many  of  the  rough  pastures  and  thick  woodlands.  The 
landowners  are,  on  the  whole,  well  disposed,  being  only  too  glad  to  do  ail 
they  can  to  keep  down  the  foxes,  which  are  steadily  on  the  increase.  Ow- 
ing to  the  character  of  the  country  it  is  impossible  to  do  any  systematic 
earth-stopping,  hence  all  the  chances  are  in  favor  of  the  fox,  and  hounds  are 
rarely  able  to  kill  above  ground. 

Hunting  men  who  are  lucky  enough  to  have  a  good  grass  country  over 
which  they  can  enjoy  a  sustained  gallop,  scarcely  realize  the  tremendous 
difficulties  of  fox-hunting  in  parts  of  New  England,  but  to  those  who  are 
great  lovers  of  the  niceties  of  hound-work,  as  are  Mr.  Whitin  and  many  of  the 
members  of  the  Blackstone  Valley  Hunt,  the  abundance  of  foxes  more  than 
makes  up  for  the  difficult  character  of  the  country.  As  the  immortal  Beckford 
says :  "  The  countries  which  are  favorable  to  horses  are  seldom  so  to  hounds." 

5 


The  Blue  Ridge  Hunt 


DISTINCTIVE  COLLAR - Navy  blue 

EVENING  DRESS Scarlet  coat,  navy  blue  facings 

MASTER - Edward  Gay  Butler,  Esq. 

SECRETARY - - Townsend  Burwell,  Esq.,  Millwood,  Va. 

HUNTSMAN - The  Master 

HON.WHIPPERS-IN \  \'\^^°'^^  ^^^^'  ^^.- 

(  Znd,  1  ownsend  Burwell,  hsq. 

HOUNDS 1 2  couples,  American 

KENNELS "  Annefield."  Millwood,  Va. 

POST  OFFICE - Berryville,  Clarke  County,  Va. 

DAYS  OF  MEETING Wednesday  and  Saturday 

and  holidays 

LENGTH  OF  SEASON September  15th  to  April  15th 


THE  Blue  Ridge  Hunt,  which  was  founded  in  1 888,  with  head- 
quarters at  Millwood,  Clarke  County,  Virginia,  is  blessed  with 
one  of  the  most  beautiful  hunting  countries  in  America.  The 
large  rolling  Shenandoah  Valley,  with  the  Blue  Ridge  on  the  east  and  the 
Allegheny  mountains  on  the  west,  affords  a  variety  of  country  which  it 
would  be  hard  to  equal ;  strong  woodland  coverts  where  the  foxes  are 
plentiful,  stony  upland  pastures  and  acres  of  good  blue-grass  are  there,  while 
the  fencing  is  of  every  variety  —  stone  walls,  post-and-rails,  Virginia  snake 
fences,  and  last,  but  not  least,  alas !  the  wire,  the  greatest  curse  of  the 
hunting  man,  in  America  as  well  as  in  England.  And,  worst  of  all,  on  the 
increase  here,  as  in  many  other  places.  If  the  farmers  only  realized  the 
truth  of  the  poem  at  the  end  of  this  volume,  they  would  never  put  up  a 
strand  of  wire  again ;  but  even  with  this  drawback,  the  followers  of  the  Blue 

6 


THE    BLUE    RIDGE 

Ridge  hounds  have  little  to  complain  of,  for  the  Master  shows  good  sport 
on  Wednesdays  and  Saturdays  from  September  1 5th  to  April  1 5th  —  a 
long  season  for  any  country. 

The  pack  consists  of  about  a  dozen  couples  of  American  hounds ;  a  very 
fair  lot,  which  were  bred  in  the  Shenandoah  Valley  and  hence  adapted  to 
the  country  hunted. 

The  type  of  horse  most  used  is  a  half  or  three-quarter  bred  one,  as  the 
pace  is  not  particularly  fast  and  there  is  a  good  deal  of  very  trappy  jump- 
ing. Hunters  that  have  been  schooled  with  the  Blue  Ridge  hounds  are  to 
be  found  in  many  of  the  northern  countries.  "  Pendennis,"  a  stallion  of 
great  reputation  as  a  getter  of  hunters,  stood  in  this  section  for  a  great  many 
years,  and  one  of  the  best  lady's  hunters  the  authors  have  ever  seen  was  a 
brown  gelding  by  "Pendennis"  named  "The  Wizard,"  owned  by  Mrs. 
Henderson  of  Millwood,  which  has  been  hunted  regularly  with  the  Blue 
Ridge  and  Middlesex  packs. 

When  the  Hunt  was  founded  in  1 888,  Dr.  Gwynn  Harrison  was  elected 
M.  F.  H.,  and  continued  to  hold  that  office  until  1896,  when  George 
Jones,  Esq.,  carried  the  horn,  only  to  be  followed  in  1 897  by  Arthur 
Bevan,  Esq.,  who  remained  in  office  for  a  year,  when  Dr.  Harrison  again 
took  the  pack,  remaining  in  office  until  1904,  when  Edward  Gay  But- 
ler, Esq.,  of  Berryville  was  elected.  Mr.  Butler  built  quarters  for  the  hounds 
at  his  own  place,  "  Annefield,"  and  has  remained  in  office  ever  since,  hunt- 
ing the  hounds  himself,  and  shoving  excellent  sport,  the  Fields  averaging 
from  twenty  to  twenty-five  in  number. 

The  attitude  of  the  landowners  is  most  friendly,  much  of  the  country 
hunted  over  in  Clarke  County  being  owned  by  members,  and  an  annual 
luncheon  is  given  to  all  landowners  over  whose  property  the  Hunt  rides. 

Foxes  are  plentiful,  and  of  two  varieties,  red  foxes  predominating  along 
the  Shenandoah  River,  while  the  grays  are  to  be  found  in  abundance  along 
the  Opeguon. 


The  Blue  Run  Hunt 


DISTINCTIVE  COLLAR Sky  blue 

EVENING  DRESS Scarlet  coat,  sky  blue  facings 

MASTER James  N.  Andrews,  Esq. 

SECRETARY George   Barbour,  Esq.,  Somerset,  Va. 

HUNTSMAN The  Master 

WHIPPERS-IN \  \'\'^-  "•  ^"^^l 

(   Znd,  bamuel  Hudley 

HOUNDS 1 8  couples,  English 

KENNELS Waverly  Farm,  Orange  County,  Va. 

POST  OFFICE Somerset,  Orange  County,  Va. 

DAYS  OF  MEETING One  day  a  week  and  occasional 

bye-days 

LENGTH  OF  SEASON - September  15th  to  May  1st 


ONE  of  the  younger  Hunts  in  the  vicinity  of  Charlottesville,  Vir- 
ginia, is  the  Blue  Run,  whose  kennels  are  located  at  Waverly 
Farm,  in  Somerset,  Orange  County.  In  December  1 905,  a  num- 
ber of  gentlemen,  landowners  who  controlled  most  of  the  hunting  country 
around  Somerset  and  who  had  been  hunting  from  time  to  time  wdth  the 
Charlottesville  and  Keswick  packs,  came  to  the  conclusion  that  they  might 
as  well  support  a  Hunt  of  their  own  and,  joining  together  under  the  Presidency 
of  Mr.  William  DuPont,  formed  the  Blue  Run  Hunt. 

The  officers  elected  at  that  time  were  William  DuPont,  Esq.,  of  Orange, 
President  and  Treasurer;  George  Barbour,  Esq.,  of  Somerset,  Secretary,  and 
James  N.  Andrews,  Esq.,  of  Somerset,  M.  F.  H.  These  gentlemen  still 
continue  in  office  and  the  Master,  now  in  his  fourth  season,  has  got  together 
an  excellent  pack  of  eighteen  couples  of  English  hounds. 

8 


3i 


JAMES  N.   ANDKEWS,   ESQ.,  M.F.H. 


THE    BLUE    RUN 

Contrary  to  the  usual  preference  of  Southerners,  the  members  of  the  Blue 
Run  find  that  the  English  hound,  with  his  better  manners  and  more  level 
appearance  is  best  suited  to  their  purposes.  This  only  tends  to  prove  the 
opinion  so  strongly  upheld  by  those  Masters  who  have  given  the  English 
foxhound  a  fair  trial  in  America  and  who  contend  that  if  properly  handled 
in  the  field,  better  sport  can  be  obtained  by  its  use  than  by  using  the  native 
product. 

From  the  middle  of  September  until  May  the  Blue  Run  hounds  go  out 
after  fox  or  on  the  drag  on  one  advertised  day  of  the  week,  while  frequent 
bye-days  are  arranged  to  suit  the  convenience  of  the  members  and  the 
exigencies  of  weather  conditions.  The  country  is  rolling  and  in  places  quite 
mountainous,  many  small  streams  and  ditches,  interspersed  with  plank,  stone 
and  post-and-rail  fences,  affording  interesting  jumping. 

There  is  a  great  deal  of  woodland  and  very  little  of  the  country  hunted 
over  is  under  cultivation,  which  condition  seems  to  rather  disprove  the  con- 
tention of  many  southern  Masters  that  English  hounds  are  useless  in  a 
heavily  wooded  country  where  much  of  the  hunting  has  to  be  done  without 
the  aid  of  a  huntsman.  Scenting  conditions  are  excellent  and  the  Master, 
who  carries  the  horn  himself,  is  able  to  show  very  good  sport.  Of  course, 
the  going  is  very  trappy,  and  a  half-bred  horse  of  quiet  disposition  and  the 
best  of  manners  is  the  one  best  adapted  to  the  country  and  proves  the  most 
satisfactory. 

The  farmers  are  very  well  disposed  toward  the  Hunt  and  are  often  to  be 
seen  in  considerable  number  at  the  meets.  Gordonsville  and  Orange,  both 
within  half-a-dozen  miles  of  the  kennels,  afford  excellent  accommodations 
for  visiting  sportsmen,  who  are  always  welcome  in  the  Field. 


The  Brandywine  Hounds 

(MR.  MATHER'S) 

DISTINCTIVE  COLLAR Old  gold 

EVENING   DRESS -- Scarlet  coat,  old  gold  facings 

MASTER - Charles  E.  Mather,  Esq.,  Philadelphia,  Pa. 

HUNTSMAN WiUiam  Thompson 

WHIPPEFIS-IN  \  l'\  1°""  ^"li"    J,   , 

(  Znd,  Uelmont  broadbelt 

HOUNDS - 45  couples,  English 

KENNELS Brandywine  Meadow  Farm 

POST-OFFICE - West  Chester,  Chester  County,  Pa. 

DAYS  OF  MEETING - - Every  hunting  day 

LENGTH  OF  SEASON October  1st  to  April  1st 

)A  S  early  as  1 766,  an  organized  Hunt,  known  as  the  Gloucester 
/  ^  Fox  Hunting  Club,  was  established  in  America,  starting  with  a 
Y  m  fixed  limit  of  twenty-five  members.  The  organizers  of  this 
club  were  residents  of  Philadelphia  and  of  the  county  of  Gloucester, 
across  the  Delaware  River  in  New  Jersey.  Its  hunting  was  somewhat 
irregular,  yet  was  organized  along  a  definite  line,  and  later  on  hounds 
went  out  on  Thursdays  and  Fridays,  and  the  Fields  on  holidays  were 
large. 

The  scant  records  of  its  existence  indicate  that  it  found  plenty  of  sport, 
for  the  company  often  sat  dovm  to  the  hunting  dinner  with  two  or  even 
three  brushes  to  their  credit ;  which  can  scarcely  ever  be  said  of  more 
modern  Hunts.  The  American  Revolution,  of  course,  interrupted  all  reg- 
ular hunting,  but  at  the  close  of  the  war,  the  original  President  of  the  Hunt 
Club,  Samuel  Morris,  Esq.,  was  re-elected  and  the  club  revived. 

Mr.  Morris  was  one  of  the  organizers  of  the  First  Troop  of  Philadelphia 

10 


CHARLES  E.    MATHER,    ESQ.,    M.F.H. 


THE    BRANDYWINE 

City  Cavalry  and  became  its  Captain,  thus  continuing  to  command  many 
of  the  Club  members  who  had  joined  its  ranks.  When  Peace  was  finally 
made,  he  was  among  those  who  received  the  thanks  of  General  Washing- 
ton for  gallant  services  rendered  at  Trenton  and  Monmouth,  and  later 
became  Governor  of  the  "  State  in  Schuylkill,"  one  of  the  oldest  social  clubs 
in  the  world. 

The  history  of  the  Gloucester  Fox  Hunting  Club,  which  will  be  found 
in  another  place,  belongs  rightly  to  the  Rose  Tree  Fox  Hunting  Club, 
which  is  directly  descended  from  it,  although  this  is  true  of  almost  all  of  the 
Pennsylvania  Hunts. 

Among  the  various  Hunts  which  developed  about  Philadelphia  were  the 
Chester  Valley,  Lima,  Radnor,  and  many  others ;  but  as  we  are  writing  of 
the  Brandywine  Hounds,  of  which  Mr.  Charles  E.  Mather  has  always  been 
sole  Master  and  owner,  it  is  only  necessary  to  touch  upon  that  portion  of 
the  Radnor  history  wath  which  Mr.  Mather  has  to  do.  The  Radnor  Hunt 
was  organized  in  1884  and  developed  slowly  until  1887,  when  Mr. 
Mather  was  elected  to  the  Mastership,  and  a  more  happy  selection  it  would 
have  been  difficult  to  make,  coming,  as  he  did,  from  a  fox-hunting  family ; 
his  grandfather  having  maintained  a  pack  of  foxhounds  at  Coatesville, 
Pennsylvania,  seventy-five  years  earlier. 

Mr.  Mather  is  one  of  the  strongest  supporters  of  the  English  foxhound  in 
the  United  States  today,  and  has  bred  hounds  more  systematically  and  for 
a  longer  time  than  anyone  else ;  consequently  his  opinions  are  of  great  value 
to  the  fox-hunting  world  and  his  remarks  on  hunting  in  Pennsylvama  are 
given  in  full,  as  follows : 

"  When  I  became  Master  of  the  Radnor  Hounds,  in  1 887,  the  Radnor 
Hunt,  which  succeeded  to  the  name  and  country  —  the  latter  consisting  of 
Radnor  township  and  a  goodly  portion  of  the  land  surrounding  it  —  had 
been  hunted  by  a  farmers  pack  for  many  years. 

"  This  pack  we  purchased  and  kept  and  hunted  in  the  manner  customary 
to  farmers  in  those  days.  They  were  of  the  good  old-fashioned  type  of 
hound,  slow  but  with  good  noses  and  voices,  and  made  a  good  nucleus  for 
our  pack,  which  was  augmented  from  time  to  time  by  the  purchase  of  other 

II 


THE    BRANDYWINE 

private  packs  in  the  vicinity,  with  the  double  object  of  increasing  our  kennels 
and  our  country.  At  no  time  during  the  fifteen  years  of  my  Mastership 
was  the  Hunt  without  a  good  pack  of  native  hounds.  For  several  seasons 
I  was  my  own  huntsman,  and  continued  to  hunt  the  hounds  on  various  oc- 
casions while  I  held  office  there.  In  1 889,  being  in  England,  I  brought 
over  five  couples  of  English  hounds  and  hunted  them  with  the  others,  and 
considered  that  it  improved  the  general  work  of  the  pack. 

"  In  the  spring  of  1891,  just  at  the  close  of  the  hunting  season,  our  entire 
pack  of  twenty-five  couples  of  most  excellent  hounds,  which  I  had  been 
selecting  for  years,  was  destroyed  by  rabies ;  but  by  the  time  the  hunting 
season  came  round  in  the  fall  I  had  again  secured  two  of  the  adjacent 
packs. 

"  In  the  fall  of  1 892, 1  secured  the  Belvoir  draft  for  the  year — ^young  and 
old  —  thirty-one  couples  in  all,  which  I  purchased  and  maintained  at  my  own 
expense,  while  they  were  at  Radnor.  My  first  huntsman  was  Frank  Gil- 
lard,  Jr.,  son  of  the  noted  Belvoir  huntsman,  and  later,  Alfred  Loder ;  in  fact, 
at  no  time  have  I  had  other  than  English  huntsmen,  my  present  one,  William 
Thompson,  having  been  late  huntsman  to  Lord  Fitzhardinge's  pack,  the  Old 
Berkeley,  said  to  be  one  of  the  best  working  packs  in  the  Kingdom. 

"  From  1 892  to  1 897,  native  and  English  packs  were  hunted  together  or 
separately,  as  it  might  chance.  By  1 897,  the  land  in  Radnor  township  be- 
coming very  valuable  and  more  thickly  settled  each  year,  I  was  tempted  to 
migrate  to  a  more  open  country,  about  eighteen  miles  to  the  south  and 
located  on  the  Brandywine  River  in  Chester  County,  transferring  my  hounds 
—  the  Belvoir  draft  —  to  that  location,  where  they  have  since  been  known 
as  '  The  Brandywine  Hounds.' " 

In  1 90 1 ,  Mr.  Mather  resigned  his  office  as  Master  of  the  Radnor,  after  a 
period  of  fourteen  years,  and  since  that  time  has  devoted  his  attention  to 
breeding  a  type  of  hound  which,  in  his  opinion,  is  best  suited  to  the  country 
over  which  he  hunts.  He  has  met  with  great  success  and  the  Brandywine 
Hounds  today  are  the  oldest  pure-blooded  pack  in  the  United  States. 

From  time  to  time,  Mr.  Mather  has  imported  a  new  stallion  hound  from  the 
Belvoir,  but  has  never  sullied  his  pack  with  an  introduction  of  inferior  blood. 

12 


I 


THE    BRANDYWINE 

In  his  opinion,  there  is  no  such  distinction,  in  fact,  as  an  English  foxhound 
and  an  American  foxhound.  To  quote  his  own  words :  "  A  thorough- 
bred foxhound  is  the  same  in  England  as  in  America.  We  come  down  to 
the  distinction  of  hounds  of  pure  blood  and  hounds  that  have  been  crossed 
with  other  breeds.  These  crosses  have  been  so  numerous  that  it  is  impos- 
sible to  breed  these  crossed  or  so-called  '  native '  hounds  with  any  degree  of 
certainty  as  to  what  the  produce  will  be." 

The  result  of  his  breeding  is  that  he  has  produced  a  pack  of  foxhounds 
which  have  become  thoroughly  localized  and  which  are,  in  reality,  to  again 
quote  his  ovm  words :  "  Chester  County  hounds,  all  having  been  bred  on 
the  farm  for  more  generations  than  the  average  American,  and  are,  there- 
fore, English  by  descent  only.  I  feel  positively  sure  that  my  home-bred 
hounds  are  faster  and  have  better  noses  and  voices  than  their  imported  pro- 
genitors. Also,  I  think  that  they  have  become  more  self-reliant  because  of 
the  necessity  of  giving  them  a  wider  range  when  drawing  our  large  wood- 
lands. Foxes  hereabouts  are  very  wild  and  strong  and  on  one  recent 
occasion  in  February  my  hounds  ran  one  fox  from  8:30  a.  m.  until  3:00 
p.  m.,  finally  putting  him  to  ground.  There  were  only  a  few  short  checks, 
and  hounds  were  at  no  time  lifted.  The  pace  was  fast  throughout,  and 
horses  couldn't  live  with  them  at  the  finish." 

The  attitude  of  the  landowners  in  the  Brandywine  country  is  most  friendly, 
they  having  been  accustomed  to  fox-hunting  all  their  lives,  many  of  them 
following  the  hounds  themselves,  while  others  see  what  they  can  of  the 
day's  hunting  on  foot. 

In  fact,  Chester  County  is  one  of  the  most  ideal  hunting  countries  in  the 
United  States.  Fox-hunting  has  been  the  winter  sport  of  the  community 
ever  since  Colonial  days,  and  at  one  towTiship,  a  few  years  ago,  there  was 
celebrated  the  one-hundredth  anniversary  of  a  meet  of  foxhounds  at  a  cer- 
tain farm  with  over  five  hundred  hounds. 

Mr.  Mather  maintains  extensive  stabling  at  his  Brandywine  Meadow 
Farm  in  Birmingham  township  —  the  Brandywine  battlefield.  There  the 
hounds  and  hunters  are  bred,  and  for  some  years  past  no  outside  purchases 
have  been  made.     Whenever  these  are  required,  whether  for  horse  or  hound, 

13 


THE    BRANDYWINE 

Mr.  Mather  insists  that  they  shall  be  thoroughbred,  his  brood-mares  being 
Irish  hunters  which  he  has  himself  imported. 

It  is  perhaps  unnecessary  to  say  that  the  hunting  establishment  is,  and 
always  has  been,  maintained  at  the  Master's  expense,  being  his  personal 
property,  and  it  is  worthy  of  note  here  that  the  best  packs  in  America,  as 
in  England,  are  those  maintained  by  private  individuals,  where  the  Master- 
ship is  not  changing  from  time  to  time. 


14 


The  Castle  Hill  Hounds 

(MRS.  POTTS'S) 

DISTINCTIVE  COLLAR - Dark  blue 

EVENING  DRESS Scarlet  coat,  dark  blue  collar  and  facings 

MASTER - Mrs.  Allen  Potts 

SECRETARY Allen  Potts,  Esq.,  "Castle  Hill,"  Cobham,  Va. 

HUNTSMAN The    Master 

WHIPPERS-IN - \    '*''  William  Garrison 

(   2nd,  J.  Johnson 

HOUNDS 11  couples,  English 

KENNELS  AND  POST  OFFICE "Castle  Hill,"  Cobham.  Va. 

DAYS  OF  MEETING Monday,  Wednesday  and  Friday 

LENGTH  OF  SEASON October  1st  to  April  15th 

THE  Castle  Hill  Hounds  are  probably  as  old  a  pack  as  exists  in 
America  today,  and  yet,  owing  to  the  fact  that  they  always  have 
been  and  still  are  a  private  pack,  it  is  a  difficult  matter  to  give 
any  accurate  facts  as  to  their  history.  The  present  pack  is  the  property  of 
Mrs.  Allen  Potts,  nee  Miss  Gertrude  Rives,  who  is  the  direct  descendant 
of  Dr.  Thomas  Walker,  whose  father  was  an  early  settler  in  Virginia. 
"  Casde  Hill,"  the  estate  from  which  the  pack  takes  its  name,  has  always 
been  in  the  possession  of  Mrs.  Potts's  family  and  foxhounds  have  always 
been  kept,  there  being  a  family  pack  at  all  times  except  during  the  periods 
of  the  American  Revolution  and  the  Civil  War. 

The  first  Master,  Dr.  Thomas  Walker,  of  "  Castle  Hill,"  about  the  year 
1 742  imported  a  pack  of  foxhounds  from  England,  which  he  maintained 
and  hunted  for  the  amusement  of  his  family  and  neighbors.  The  old 
gentleman  was  a  great  sportsman,  and  on  account  of  his  feats  of  strength 
was  originated  the  expression  "  The  Devil  and  Tom  Walker." 

15 


THE    CASTLE    HILL 

Just  what  type  of  hounds  his  were  would  be  difficult  to  tell,  but  Dr. 
Walker  is  said  to  have  been  a  great  lover  of  the  foxhound,  and  they  were 
probably  of  the  best  blood  procurable  at  that  time.  Up  to  the  Revolution 
these  hounds  were  probably  carefully  maintained,  and  no  outside  blood 
sullied  their  pedigrees,  but  it  is  to  be  feared  that  the  younger  generations 
were  bss  careful,  and  the  pack  gradually  fell  to  the  level  of  most  of  the 
Virginia  "  trencher  fed  "  hounds. 

Mrs.  Potts,  who  is  a  finished  horsewoman,  procured  five  couples  of  pure- 
blooded  English  hounds  from  the  mother  country,  and  "  Castle  Hill "  is 
one  of  the  few  places  in  Virginia  where  one  can  see  clean-bred  English 
hounds  today. 

Mr.  Allen  Potts  attended  the  Grafton-Middlesex  Foxhound  Match  at 
Middleburg,  Va.,  in  the  autumn  of  1 905,  acting  as  Honorary  Clerk  of  the 
Match,  and  saw  there  that  really  good  English  hounds  could  show  the  best 
of  sport,  possessing  lots  of  speed  and  at  the  same  time  level  heads. 

Mrs.  Potts  has  given  her  Field  most  excellent  sport  three  days  a  week 
over  the  small  territory  ten  miles  square  in  Albemarle  County  which  sur- 
rounds "  Castle  Hill,"  and  all  the  landowners  have  showm  the  most  friendly 
spirit  in  allowing  this  little  pack  to  hunt  over  their  property. 

The  country,  which  is  quite  open,  is  fenced  throughout  wth  the  typical 
Virginia  fence,  the  "snake-fence,"  and  the  jumping  is  pretty  stiff,  though 
sound  take-off  and  landing  make  good  going.  The  Fields  are  small,  eight 
or  ten  being  the  usual  number,  but  enthusiastic,  and  they  are  always  out  to 
go.  Foxes  are  fairly  plentiful  and  are  hunted  most  of  the  time,  though  once 
in  a  while  the  Master  lays  a  drag  for  those  of  the  Field  who  wish  a  bruis- 
ing gallop. 

There  is  no  subscription,  the  pack  being  in  every  way  a  private  one, 
although  the  public,  and  especially  the  farmers,  are  warmly  welcomed 
guests. 

The  Castle  Hill  Hounds  enjoy  the  distinction  of  being  the  only  recog- 
nized Hunt  in  America  which  has  a  woman  as  M.  F.  H.  and  Huntsman. 


16 


The  Charlottesville  Hunt 


DISTINCTIVE  COLLAR Blue 

EVENING  DRESS Scarlet  coat,  blue  facings 

MASTER - A.  S.  Craven,  Esq. 

SECRETARY Henry  B.  Boone,  Esq.,  "West  Cairns," 

Charlottesville,  Albemarle  County,  Va. 

HUNTSMAN - WiUiam  Harris 

HON.  WHIPPERS-IN \  \'\  ^*^'''  ^^''^'  t'  ^'^- 

(  2nd,  Percy  Payne,  Esq. 

HOUNDS  \  ^  Couples,  English 

(    1 0  Couples,  American 

KENNELS - "  AzaUa,"  Albemarle  County,  Va. 

POST-OFFICE Charlottesville,  Va. 

DAYS  OF  MEETING \   F°'^°"n«^''  Tuesday  and  Friday 

(   Draghounds,  Thursday 

LENGTH  OF  SEASON October  15lh  to  April  15th 


EARLY  in  1 854,  a  subscription  pack,  kept  up  by  the  residents  of 
the  country  around  the  university  town  of  Charlottesville,  hunted 
over  the  territory  now  claimed  by  the  Charlottesville  Hunt. 
Members  of  the  University  of  Virginia,  founded  by  President  Thomas  Jef- 
ferson of  "  Monticello,"  lent  their  support  to  the  Hunt,  which,  although 
carried  on  in  a  desultory  manner,  continued  its  existence  until  1 894,  when  it 
was  formally  founded  and  reorganized  under  its  present  name. 

Not  until  1 907,  however,  did  it  ask  the  National  Steeplechase  and  Hunt 
Association  for  recognition,  which  was  granted  in  October  of  that  year. 
Much  of  the  country  about  Charlottesville  is  settled  by  Englishmen,  many 
of  whom  maintain  breeding  establishments  and  devote  their  time  to  the 
raising  of  horses  in  which  thoroughbred  blood  predominates.     One  of  these 

17 


THE    CHARLOTTESVILLE 

men,  the  late  Francis  Trevelyan,  Esq.,  who  was  for  many  years  identified 
with  racing  in  America,  was  the  first  Master  of  the  recognized  Hunt,  and 
continued  to  act  in  that  capacity,  to  the  entire  satisfaction  of  his  Field,  until 
his  death  in  January,  1 908.  He  was  followed  in  office  by  the  present 
Master,  A.  S.  Craven,  Esq.,  who  has  always  maintained  a  private  pack,  at 
Greenwood,  in  Albemarle  County,  some  twenty  miles  from  his  present 
kennels.  It  will  be  recalled  that  his  father,  J.  A.  Craven,  Esq.,  was  Master 
of  the  Pytchley  from  1 869  to  1 872,  and  one  can  understand  why  the 
present  Master  of  the  Charlottesville  Hunt  is  so  admirably  fitted  to  hold  the 
reins  of  office. 

There  are  at  present  in  the  kennels,  eighteen  couples  of  hounds,  eight 
couples  of  which  are  English  and  are  used  for  drag-hunting  on  Thursdays, 
and  ten  couples  of  which  are  "  natives  "and  used  for  fox-hunting  on  Tues- 
days and  Fridays. 

Within  thirty  miles  of  Charlottesville,  there  are  four  other  packs  of 
hounds ;  the  Keswick,  the  Castle  Hill,  the  Tomahawk  and  the  Blue  Run, 
affording  a  rare  choice  to  the  lovers  of  fox-hunting  living  in  this  sporting 
neighborhood,  and  the  country,  which  by-the-bye,  is  one  of  the  best  scenting 
countries  in  Virginia,  is  nearly  all  grass,  well  fenced  with  "  snake "  and 
post-and-rail  fences,  which  make  it  a  capital  one  for  riding.  It  abounds 
in  foxes,  both  red  and  gray,  and  is  eminently  suited  to  the  lover  of  the 
"  Noble  Science,"  as  well  as  for  the  hard-riding  man  who  only  wants  a 
gallop  after  the  drag. 

The  landowners,  as  wath  all  those  of  Albemarle  County,  are  most  fav- 
ourably inclined  toward  hunting,  as  the  sport  has  been  a  popular  local  insti- 
tution since  the  earliest  days,  and  many  of  them  go  out  regularly  with  the 
various  packs. 


18 


'X  »• 


% 


R.    PF.NN  SMITH,    ESQ.,  AI.F.II. 


The  Chester  Valley  Hunt 


DISTINCTIVE  COLLAR Green 

MASTER - - R.  Penn  Smith,  Esq. 

SECRETARY - '. -W.  A.  Rolin,  Esq.,  Strafford,  Pa. 

HUNTSMAN - J.  R.  Pechin 

WHIPPERS-IN - S  '''•  "^^''"  W^"'^'' 

(  2nd,  R.  Penn  Smith,  Jr.,  Esq. 

HOUNDS 25  couples,  American 

KENNELS  AND  POST-OFFICE - Strafford,  Chester  County,  Pa. 

DAYS  OF  MEETING Monday,  Wednesday  and  Saturday 

LENGTH  OF  SEASON - November  20th  to  March  20th 


ONE  of  the  sportsmen  who  came  to  the  inaugural  meeting  of  the 
Masters  of   Foxhounds  Association  which  was  held  in  New 
York  in  February,  1 907,  was  Mr.  R,  Penn  Smith,  Master  of 
the  Chester  Valley  Hunt  of  Pennsylvania. 

Fox-hunting  in  that  State,  which,  of  late  years  has  become  so  general 
that  packs  have  sprung  up  all  over  the  Commonwealth,  has  its  headquarters 
in  and  around  Philadelphia,  whose  residents  have  perhaps  a  greater  percent- 
age of  fox-hunters  among  their  number  than  any  other  city  in  the  country. 
Among  the  Hunts  about  Philadelphia,  the  Chester  Valley,  although  one 
of  the  more  modest,  is  well  known.  Founded  in  1 896  by  Messrs.  E.  R. 
Heyman,  R.  A.  Colgan,  R.  Penn  Smith,  J.  Comly  Hall,  Henry  O.  Garber 
and  E.  J.  Matthews,  it  has  enjoyed  a  successful  period  of  sport  up  to  the 
present  time  under  one  able  Mastership;  and  the  fact  that  there  has  been 
no  change  in  the  governing  hand  during  its  history  has  been  productive  of 
the  best  of  results  both  in  the  field  and  in  its  relations  with  the  landowners. 
The  Master,  and  for  that  matter  most  of  the  members,  are  staunch  sup- 

19 


THE    CHESTER    VALLEY 

porters  of  the  American  type  of  hound,  and  although  the  Brandywine  stal- 
lions, pure  English  foxhounds,  are  always  at  the  service  of  their  neighbors, 
affording  an  opportunity  to  the  Masters  of  eastern  Pennsylvania  to  experi- 
ment in  the  crossing  of  the  two  types,  as  the  Radnor  has  done  with  very 
good  results;  nevertheless  Mr.  Smith  has  stuck  pretty  closely  to  the  old- 
fashioned  Pennsylvania  foxhounds — no  manners,  no  looks,  no  levelness — 
but  with  the  best  of  noses,  plenty  of  voice  and  lots  of  speed. 

The  country  extends  from  Bridgeport  to  Downingtown,  a  distance  of  seven- 
teen miles,  in  one  direction  and  from  the  Pennsylvania  R.R.  to  the  Schuyl- 
kill River  in  the  other,  and  includes  the  beautiful  Chester  Valley,  from  which 
the  Hunt  takes  its  name  and  which  has  no  superior  as  a  fox-hunting  territory. 

Foxes  are  plentiful,  the  going  sound — mostly  grass  with  large  enclosures, 
fenced  in  by  post-and-rail  fences — and  supplied  with  a  most  liberal-minded 
set  of  landowners,  many  of  whom  are  usually  in  the  saddle  themselves  be- 
hind the  hounds,  of  which  they  are  warm  partisans  and  supporters ;  so  that 
there  is  rarely  any  obstacle  to  good  sport. 

Mr.  Smith,  while  he  is  much  keener  on  the  work  of  hounds  in  the  field 
than  he  is  about  their  show  qualities  and  manners,  is  a  strong  backer  of  the 
Masters  of  Foxhounds  Association  and  does  everything  in  his  power  to  keep 
up  the  interest  in  foxhounds  in  his  own  country.  He  is  a  very  busy  man, 
having  on  his  hands  the  management  of  one  of  the  greatest  stock  farms  in 
the  United  States;  but  he  always  finds  time  to  attend  to  his  duties  as 
M.  F.  H.  and  it  is  in  a  great  degree  owing  to  his  popularity  in  the  country 
that  the  hounds  enjoy  their  present  prosperity. 


20 


w 


J 


«35-  V** 


The  Chevy  Chase  Hunt 


DISTINCTIVE  COLLAR Black  velvet 

EVENING  DREISS Scarlet  coat,  scarlet  facings,  black  velvet  collar 

MASTER V Clarence  Moore,  Esq. 

SECRETARY Gist  Blair,  Esq.  Washington,  D.  C. 

HUNTSMAN ~ - Robert   Curran 

HON.  WHIPPERS-IN  >    i^i,  i  .  n.  mchbom.  Esq 


(  1st,  P.  H.  Hich 
I  2nd,  J.  A.  C.  P 


Palmer,  Esq. 

HOUNDS  30  couples,  English 

KENNELS  AND  POST-OFFICE Chevy  Chase,  Md. 

DAYS  OF  MEETING - - Wednesday  and  Saturday 

LENGTH  OF  SEASON November  1 5th  to  April  15th 


FOX-HUNTING  about  Washington  was  probably  begun  before 
the  Revolution.  At  any  rate,  it  is  a  well-known  fact  that  GenereJ 
Washington  kept  hounds  at  Mount  Vernon,  and  there  were  also 
hounds  at  Bladensburg  and  in  Montgomery  County  at  the  same  time ;  but 
there  are  no  records  of  any  organized  fox-hunting  until  the  early  seventies. 
At  that  time,  a  Mr.  Haskins,  who  lived  in  a  corner  grocery  store,  on  what 
is  now  Fourteenth  street,  kept  a  pack  of  hounds  in  his  back  yard.  He  was 
a  true  sportsman,  and  his  horse  was  equally  efficient  in  delivering  groceries 
to  his  customers  and  in  carrying  his  master  in  some  of  the  great  runs  which 
were  had  over  the  adjoining  farms. 

There  was  many  a  man  thereabouts  in  those  times  who  loved  the  cry 
of  a  pack  of  hounds,  and  on  off  days,  when  business  was  dull,  the  sport- 
loving  gentry  used  to  go  to  "  old  man  Haskins  "  and  persuade  him  to  take 
out  his  hounds.  There  were  no  pink  coats  in  these  early  days,  but  there 
were  some  pretty  stout  hearts,  and  some  pretty  well-worn  corduroy. 

21 


/ 


THE    CHEVY    CHASE 

Haskins  ran  his  hounds  in  the  '70's  and  '80's  with  great  satisfaction  to 
himself  and  his  neighbors.  The  hounds  which  he  kept  were,  of  course,  of 
the  American  variety,  and  although  they  babbled  a  bit  too  much,  and  were 
under  about  as  good  control  as  the  game  they  hunted,  they  furnished  good 
sport  to  their  followers. 

It  was  not  till  1 885  that  an  English  pack  was  imported,  and  Mr.  George 
Eustis,  a  keen  sportsman  and  a  Washingtonian  by  birth,  was  the  man  who 
was  bold  enough  to  take  the  step.  The  hounds  were  quartered  at  a  farm 
on  the  Tenallytown  road,  where  the  pack  was  known  as  the  Dumblane. 
With  the  big-boned  English  hounds  came  an  Englishman  named  Charlie 
Briscoe,  a  huntsman,  from  a  long  family  of  such,  who  hunted  the  hounds  for 
four  years  with  much  success,  Mr.  Eustis  acting  as  Master  during  that  period. 

The  Hunt  was  dissolved  in  1889,  and  in  1890  Mr.  S.  S.  Howland, 
well  known  as  a  sportsman  and  devotee  of  racing,  imported  the  second 
pack  from  England,  the  hounds  being  quartered  at  Dumblane  and  giving 
excellent  sport  during  this  year. 

In  1 890,  Mr.  Robert  Neville,  an  Irishman  by  birth  and  a  Virginian  by 
adoption,  was  elected  Master.  The  hounds  were  very  popular  under  his 
able  direction,  and  the  condition  of  the  farmers'  fences  bore  full  testimony 
to  the  hard  riding  of  the  Irish  Master  and  his  follovwng.  For  two  years  Mr. 
Neville  continued  in  office,  showang  the  best  of  sport,  and  when  in  1 89 1  he 
found  it  necessary  to  resign,  his  loss  was  greatly  felt. 

In  1 892  Mr.  Howland  came  back  to  Washington  and  took  an  old  house 
on  the  Tenallytown  road,  known  as  "  Grasslands."  There  the  survivors  of 
the  old  packs  were  sent,  and  Mr.  Howland  supplemented  these  with  a  new 
draft  from  England.  At  this  time  there  were  many  Englishmen  about 
Washington,  and  they  were  only  too  glad  to  join  their  American  cousins  in 
the  sport  which  is  so  popular  on  the  other  side.  Many  a  good  horse  fol- 
lowed the  Washington  drag  in  those  days,  and  every  one  in  this  country 
knows  of  "  Ontario,"  perhaps  one  of  the  greatest  jumping  horses  the  Ameri- 
can Horse  Show  ring  has  ever  seen. 

Mr.  Howland,  while  he  was  the  Master  and  organizer  of  these  hounds, 
was  too  busy  a  man  to  hunt  them  himself ;  and  so  the  Comte  de  Jamtelle, 

22 


ROBERT  NE\'ILLE,   ESQ.,   M.F.H.  OF  THE  DUMBLANE   189O-1891 


THE    CHEVY    CHASE 

a  Parisian,  was  Honorary  Huntsman,  and  hunted  the  hounds  in  the  north 
country  about  Tenallytown  and  through  Montgomery  and  Prince  George 
Counties. 

The  following  autumn,  1892,  saw  the  organization  of  the  Chevy  Chase 
Club.  Founded  in  the  office  of  Harvey  L.  Page,  the  architect,  it  was  a 
success  from  the  first.  An  old  white  barn  on  the  grounds  of  the  Bannock- 
burn  Golf  Club  was  the  first  headquarters,  and  here  the  horses  and  hounds 
were  quartered,  until  the  Chevy  Chase  Club  was  started,  and  the  Hunt 
became  a  part  of  the  Club. 

In  1 893,  Mr.  Henry  M.  Earle  was  Master,  and  George  Ryder  hunts- 
man. In  1 894  Mr.  P.  F.  Collier  brought  the  Monmouth  County  Hounds 
down  to  Washington,  kenneled  them  at  Chevy  Chase,  and  hunted  on  alter- 
nate days  with  the  other  pack.  The  sport  continued  to  be  carried  on  in  a 
similar  way  for  the  next  three  seasons,  until  1 898,  when  Mr.  S.  S.  Howland 
again  took  up  the  Mastership,  and  with  George  Holloway  as  huntsman, 
restored  to  the  Chevy  Chase  Hunt  its  former  prestige. 

In  1 897  Mr.  George  Dunn  was  elected  Master,  and  continued  to  hunt 
the  hounds  until  the  hunting  stopped  and  Mr.  Dunn  went  away  to  the 
Spanish  War,  where  he  was  a  Major  in  the  "  Rough  Riders." 

There  was  no  hunting  in  1 897  and  1 898,  but  in  1 899  Mr.  Clarence 
Moore  was  elected  Master.  The  new  Master  had  done  a  good  deal  of 
hunting  in  England  and  Ireland  and  was  a  strong  believer  in  the  English 
hound.  He  straightway  set  to  work  to  make  the  pack  the  equal  of  any  in 
the  country,  and  with  this  object  in  view  imported  a  large  draft  from  Eng- 
land, the  majority  of  them  from  the  Holderness.  For  the  next  five  seasons 
the  sport  at  Chevy  Chase  was  perhaps  better  than  at  any  other  period. 
The  Hunt  staff  was  well  horsed,  the  hounds  were  keen  as  well  as  good-look- 
ing, and  the  Fields  were  large  and  enthusiastic. 

To-day,  the  Chevy  Chase  Club  is  almost  more  of  a  golf  club  than  a 
Hunt  club,  but  at  that  time  the  hunting  was  the  first  consideration. 
Arrangements  were  made  to  stable  at  the  Club  not  only  the  hunters  of 
members  but  those  of  visiting  sportsmen,  while  everything  was  done  to 
attract  those  whose  hunting  seasons  had  closed  in  the  North,  and  during 

23 


.   THE    CHEVY    CHASE 

Mr.  Moore's  Mastership  it  was  no  uncommon  sight  to  see  a  large  and  well 
turned-out  Field.  The  Master,  who  had  poor  luck  at  raising  puppies,  was 
forced  to  rely  on  yearly  drafts  from  England,  and  with  the  able  assistance 
of  Robert  Curran,  his  huntsman,  kept  the  standard  of  his  pack  at  the 
high  level  which  he  had  set  for  himself  until  1905,  when  he  resigned,  and 
took  the  hounds,  which  were  his  property,  to  his  farm  near  Wanenton, 
Virginia.  For  a  while  things  looked  black,  but  through  the  exertions  of 
Mr.  Gist  Blair  and  Mr.  Charles  H.  L.  Johnston,  hunting  was  revived  again. 

Mr.  Johnston,  who  was  a  firm  believer  in  American  hounds,  got  some 
ten  couples  of  this  variety,  and  during  the  season  of  1 905-06  showed  fair 
sport.  He  had  an  uphill  game  to  play,  and  received  but  little  support  from 
the  visiting  element  in  his  Field,  but  while  his  hounds  were  a  very  nonde- 
script lot,  being  gathered  from  widely  scattered  private  kennels,  and  were 
amenable  to  very  little  discipline,  yet  his  Hunt  staff  continued  to  be  well 
mounted  and  turned  out,  and  many  excellent  days'  hunting  were  enjoyed 
by  those  of  the  members  who  still  followed  the  fortunes  of  the  pack. 

By  vote  of  the  Board  of  Governors,  in  the  spring  of  1 906,  it  was  re- 
solved not  to  continue  the  support  of  the  pack,  owing  to  the  small  numbers 
of  the  Fields  which  followed ;  but,  when  the  autumn  came  on,  and  other 
hounds  began  to  hunt,  the  old  feeling  revived ;  so,  in  the  fall  of  1 906, 
Mr.  Clarence  Moore  was  persuaded  to  again  resume  the  Mastership. 

The  country  about  Washington  is  very  good,  and  as  the  open  season  is 
a  long  one  and  foxes  fairly  plentiful,  there  is  no  reason  why  fox-hunting 
should  not  flourish  indefinitely  in  that  neighborhood. 


24 


The  Deep  Run  Hunt 


DISTINCTIVE  COLLAR Confederate  gray 

EVENING  DRESS      Scarlet  coat,  Confederate  gray  collar  and  facings 

MASTER ~ J.  St.  George  Bryan,  Esq. 

SECRETARY Jaunes  A.  Graves,  Esq.,  Westmoreland  Club,  Richmond,  Va. 

HUNTSMAN  - - - ClarenceHall 

HON.  WHIPPERS-IN \  l"',"??  Pot^^'  Esq. 

(  2nd,  Edward  Hams,  Esq. 

HOUNDS - - 15couples,  English 

KENNELS Deep  Run  Hunt  Club,  Henrico  County,  Va. 

POSTOFFICE - - Richmond,  Va. 

DAYS  OF  MEETING Saturdays  and  two  bye-days  a  week 

LENGTH  OF  SEASON October  1st  to  April  1st 


FOX-HUNTING  in  Henrico  County,  around  Richmond,  and  in 
Chesterfield  County,  just  across  the  James  River — the  Deep  Run 
country — is  almost  as  old  as  the  Colony  itself,  for  a  settlement 
called  Henricus  was  founded  where  Richmond  now  stands  the  year  follow- 
ing the  foundation  at  Jamestown,  and  ever  since  that  time  hounds  have  been 
run  over  the  fields  and  through  the  woods  around  the  present  capital  of 
Virginia. 

There  were  no  organized  clubs  in  Virginia  before  the  war  between  the 
States ;  a  fact  easily  accounted  for  when  one  remembers  that  every  country 
house  in  the  State  was  practically  a  clubhouse  open  to  the  friends  of  its 
owner.  Nearly  every  country  gentleman  maintained  a  pack  of  hounds  of 
some  sort,  and  hunted  whenever  his  fancy  walled,  so  that  a  gentleman  of 
sporting  proclivities  could  make  a  round  throughout  Virginia  and  hunt  almost 
every  day  with  a  different  pack.     During  and  after  the  war  tfiis  state  of 

25 


THE    DEEP    RUN 

things  passed  away,  and  the  late  sixties  found  but  a  remnant  of  the  many 
packs  that  had  flourished  as  late  as  '61. 

Poverty  held  down  sport  then,  but  in  spite  of  the  fact  that  mere  existence 
was  a  struggle,  many  a  country  gentleman  still  maintained  a  hound  or  two 
and,  as  in  the  early  days  in  England,  joined  his  neighbors  in  assembling  a  pack 
and  hunting  the  red  and  gray  fox.  Up  to  1885  this  system  of  hunting  pre- 
vailed, and  it  was  only  with  the  advent  of  a  number  of  English  settlers,  for 
the  most  part  younger  sons  of  English  gentlemen  who  came  to  Virginia  to 
farm,  that  hunt  clubs  began  to  be  formed. 

The  Deep  Run  Hunt,  proper,  might  be  termed  an  English  institution,  for 
it  was  fostered  by  Mr.  Blacker,  a  wealthy  Irishman,  who  owned  "  Chantilly," 
just  outside  of  Richmond,  by  Major  Hancock  and  Captain  Hancock,  Iavo 
Englishmen,  sons-in-law  of  Mr.  Blacker,  by  Mr.  P.  A.  S.  Brine,  British 
Vice-Consul  to  Virginia,  Mr.  Leathley,  an  Irishman,  Mr.  Clarke,  an  English- 
man, and  Dr.  Tritton,  an  Englishman.  Of  course,  these  were  but  a  few  of 
the  members  of  the  club,  the  majority  of  whom  were  Virginians,  but  it  was 
certainly  due  to  English  influence  that  Deep  Run  was  put  upon  a  firm  foun- 
dation. Major  Hancock  was  the  first  Master,  and  the  club  had  no  club- 
house proper,  but  met  twice  a  week,  on  Wednesday  and  Saturday,  at 
"  Chantilly,"  where  the  hounds  were  kenneled. 

After  three  years  of  this  sort  of  life,  the  club  grew  to  some  fifty  members, 
and  secured  a  clubhouse  just  off  the  Broad  Street  Road,  half  a  mile  from 
"  Chantilly."  The  house  was  primitive  and  small,  but  the  sport  furnished  was 
exceedingly  good.  Major  Hancock  returning  to  England,  Captain  Hancock, 
his  brother,  took  over  the  hounds,  and  shortly  thereafter  the  present  clubhouse 
near  the  Hermitage  Road  was  secured.  This  is  large  and  commodious,  with 
an  excellent  mile  track  adjoining  it  and  a  first-rate  steeplechase  course  near-by. 
The  club  now  has  in  the  neighborhood  of  two  hundred  and  fifty  resident 
and  non-resident  members,  the  President  being  Mr.  Ormond  Young.  The 
season  begins  each  year  about  the  1  st  of  November,  and  continues  without 
interruption  until  the  1  st  of  April,  the  weather  being  such  that  scarcely  a 
day  is  lost  from  hunting.  For  a  number  of  years  an  American  pack  was 
maintained,  but  of  late  an  English  pack  has  been  purchased,  and  only  Eng- 

26 


THE    DEEP    RUN 

lish  hounds  are  now  used.  There  is  a  drag-hunt  every  Saturday,  and  at 
least  two  bye-days  during  the  week  when  foxes  are  hunted  in  Chesterfield 
County,  across  the  James  River,  and  in  the  upper  end  of  Henrico  County. 
Those  who  have  carried  the  Master's  horn  for  Deep  Run  are  Major  Han- 
cock, Captain  Hancock,  Dr.  Tritton,  Mr.  H.  C.  Beattie,  Mr.  Allen  Potts, 
and  Mr.  J.  St.  George  Bryan. 

The  country  hunted  is  for  the  most  part  open,  although  there  are  good 
bits  of  woodland  here  and  there.  The  fences  are  only  fairly  high,  but  there 
are  found  wide  ditches  and  a  good  lot  of  brooks  throughout  the  runs.  The 
horses  best  suited  to  the  country  are  good,  strong,  quiet  half-breds  who  can 
jump  and  gallop  well.  A  rattle-brained  thoroughbred  would  prove  a  most 
unsatisfactory  mount  at  Deep  Run.  The  landowTiers  are  good  sportsmen, 
always  most  obliging,  and  are  willing  to  do  all  they  can  to  further  the  sport, 
in  many  instances  cutting  their  v«re  and  putting  up  rails  in  order  to  allow  the 
Hunt  to  cross  their  fields. 

The  accommodations  for  visiting  sportsmen  are  excellent,  there  being  plenty 
of  amusements  of  all  sorts  to  provide  entertainment  on  non-hunting  days,  and 
good  hotels.     Provender  is  cheap  and  stabling  abundant. 

The  Club  gives  two  race  meetings  annually,  one  in  the  spring  and  one  in 
the  fall,  to  which  the  admission  is  strictly  by  invitation.  The  colors  of  the 
club  are  cardinal  red  and  silver  gray,  the  colors  of  the  Confederacy. 


27 


The  Elkridge  Hunt 


DISTINCTIVE  COLLAR Old  gold 

EVENING  DRESS Scarlet  coat,  scailet  facings,  old  gold  collar 

MASTER Edward  A.  Jackson,  Esq. 

SECRETARY Graeme  Tumbuli,  Esq.,  Woodbrook,  Baltiniore  County,  Md. 

HUNTSMAN - Leo   Gardell 

WHIPPER-IN Elmer    Berlin 

HOUNDS 30  couples,  half-bred  English  and  American 

KENNELS  AND  POST-OFFICE Woodbrook.  Baltimore  County,  Md. 

DAYS  OF  MEETING Wednesday  and  Saturday 

LENGTH  OF  SEASON October  1st  to  April  20th 


WHILE  Philadelphia  can  perhaps  boast  of  having  more  packs 
of  hounds  within  easy  reach  than  any  other  city  in  America ; 
the  capital  of  Maryland,  lying  only  some  seventy-five  miles  to 
the  south,  has  every  reason  to  be  proud  of  the  tvy^o  hunt  clubs  which  are 
practically  composed  of  Baltimore  citizens.  The  older  of  these,  the  Elkridge 
Hunt  Club,  to  give  it  its  full  name,  was  organized  in  1 878  through  the  efforts 
of  a  little  group  of  sportsmen  who  had  been  in  the  habit  of  taking  their  sport  with 
each  other's  hounds  pretty  much  as  it  came,  and  without  any  definite  fixtures. 
On  March  6th  of  that  year,  they  formed  themselves  into  an  incorporated 
organization  for  the  furtherance  of  fox-hunting,  and  asked  Mr.  Murray  Han- 
son, one  of  the  most  enthusiastic  of  their  number,  to  act  as  Master  of  Hounds. 
This  he  did,  and  until  his  resignation  in  1 880,  showed  that  his  election  was 
fully  justified.  Mr.  William  T.  Frick  filled  the  gap  for  the  following  season, 
which  was  one  of  great  importance  to  the  new  club ;  for  it  was  during  that 
year  that  Mr.  George  S.  Brown  and  his  son,  Mr.  Alexander  Brown,  began 
to  hunt  wdth  the  Elkridge. 

28 


I 

00 


THE    ELKRIDGE 

These  two  gentlemen  had  done  a  good  bit  of  hunting  in  England,  and 
were  most  energetic  in  their  efforts  to  improve  the  home  pack.  In  the  au- 
tumn of  1 880,  Mr.  Brown,  Senior,  was  elected  President  of  the  Club,  while 
his  son  was  elected  Master  at  the  beginning  of  the  following  season,  serving 
in  that  capacity  until  1 884,  when  Mr.  T.  Swann  Latrobe  succeeded  him. 

Up  to  1 884  the  pack  had  consisted  of  some  fifteen  couples  of  native  Amer- 
ican hounds  picked  up  from  various  sources  throughout  the  state ;  but  on  his 
accession  to  office,  the  new  Master  promptly  imported  a  draft  from  England, 
finding  them  more  easily  handled  than  the  home-bred  product.  Mr.  Latrobe 
remained  in  office  until  1 893,  and  by  his  unflagging  efforts  to  improve  his 
hounds,  not  only  furnished  very  good  sport,  but  left  the  pack  in  far  better 
condition  than  it  had  ever  been  before. 

On  his  resignation,  Mr.  Alexander  Browm  was  re-elected,  and  for  two 
years  continued  to  work  along  much  the  same  lines  as  his  predecessor ;  and 
then  finding  himself  unable  to  spare  the  time,  he  resigned. 

The  Mastership  was  filled  in  1 895  by  Mr.  G.  T.  Hopkins,  Jr.,  who  was 
able  to  act  for  one  season  only,  when  Mr.  Samuel  E.  George  succeeded 
him,  the  latter  remaining  at  the  head  of  affairs  until  1900;  when  the  present 
M.  F.  H.,  Mr.  Edward  A.  Jackson  was  elected. 

All  hunting  men  know  that  frequent  changes  in  the  Mastership  of  any 
pack  are  not  good  for  it,  no  matter  how  much  pains  each  succeeding  man 
takes.  Few  men  think  alike  when  it  comes  to  the  question  of  hound-breed- 
ing, and  it  takes  a  long  period  of  constant  study  and  work  along  the  same 
lines  to  bring  about  the  best  results.  Thus  it  was  that  Mr.  Jackson  found 
that  the  quality  of  the  hounds  in  the  kennels  had  somewhat  deteriorated,  nor 
had  their  noses  been  improved  by  the  running  of  drags  from  time  to  time, 
but  he  set  about  his  task  wath  a  will,  and  by  a  judicious  mixture  of  English 
and  American  blood,  he  has  now  a  pack  which  if  not  the  equal  in  looks  and 
levelness  of  the  best  in  the  country,  has  made  for  itself  a  very  good  reputa- 
tion in  the  matter  of  work. 

Mr.  Jackson  is  lucky  in  having  a  most  excellent  huntsman,  Leo  Gardell, 
who  has  been  most  painstaking  and  skilful  in  his  kennel  management,  and 
the  thirty  odd  couples  now  in  the  Elkridge  kennels  are  a  well-mannered, 

29 


THE    ELKRIDGE 

keen,  hard-working  lot,  which  show  the  members  of  the  Hunt  sport  second 
to  none.  Mr.  Jackson  writes  that  he  finds  that  the  cross-bred  hound,  with 
perhaps  a  predominance  of  English  blood  in  his  veins,  seems  to  be  most  ad- 
mirably suited  to  his  country,  an  opinion  which  is  borne  out  by  another  Bal- 
timore Master,  Mr.  Redmond  C.  Stewart,  whose  pack,  bred  along  somewhat 
the  same  lines,  hunt  a  very  similar  country. 

There  are  many  Masters  in  the  South  today  who  think  that  the  "  pure- 
blooded  American  hound,"  as  they  term  it,  shows  the  best  sport,  and  there 
are  some  who  find  that  the  English  hound,  bred  along  orthodox  lines,  works 
equally  well;  but  it  is  perhaps  worthy  of  note  that  three  of  the  great  packs 
in  the  South,  if  we  may  class  the  Radnor  at  Philadelphia  with  them,  have 
come  to  find  that  a  judicious  admixture  of  blood,  producing  a  hound  with 
the  size,  bone,  and  muscle  of  the  English,  and  the  beautiful  voice  and  nose 
of  his  American  progemtors,  is  best  suited  to  the  existing  conditions. 

The  authors,  both  of  them  English  hound  men,  are  of  the  humble  opin- 
ion that  this  admission  on  the  part  of  men  accustomed  to  hunt  with  Ameri- 
can hounds  is  but  the  first  step  in  the  change  which  they  feel  sure  will 
eventually  come  to  all  those  packs  which  are  regularly  kept  for  the  purpose 
of  showing  sport  across  country  to  fair-sized  Fields,  and  not  to  a  few  in- 
dividuals who  are  satisfied  to  hear  their  hounds  work  and  to  see  them  at 
intervals,  caring  nothing  for  their  collective  work  as  a  pack. 

In  1888,  the  Club  purchased  property  at  Woodbrook  in  Baltimore 
County,  some  six  miles  north  of  Baltimore,  erecting  there  in  the  same  year  a 
clubhouse,  stables,  and  kennels.  The  clubhouse  has  been  improved  and 
added  to  from  time  to  time,  until  it  is  now  one  of  the  best,  if  not  the  best. 
Hunt  clubhouse  in  the  United  States.  The  landowners  are  all  very  fa- 
vorably inclined,  and  hunting  about  Baltimore,  with  two  such  clubs  as  the 
Green  Spring  Valley  and  the  Elkridge,  is  as  good  as  may  be  found  any- 
where. 


30 


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1 

EDWARD  A.  JACKSON,  ESQ.,  M.F.H.    igoo- 


LEO  GAKDELL,    HUNTSMAN 


The  Endean  Beagles 

(MISS  BIRD'S) 

DISTINCTIVE  UNIFORM  Dark  green  habit,  Canary  waistcoat.  Hunt  buttons 

MASTER Miss  Edith  H.  Bird 

HUNTSMAN ■■ The  Master 

HON    WHIPPERS-IN  '    '*''  ^''*  Katharine  Roosevelt 

(  2nd,  Miss  Helen  Homans 

HOUNDS 12  couples,  16-inch  beagles 

KENNELS  AND  POST-OFFICE -  East  Walpole,  Norfolk  County.  Mass. 

DAYS  OF  HUNTING  Monday,  Wednesday  and  Saturday 

LENGTH  OF  SEASON September  1st  to  December  Ist 

IN  1901.  Mr.  Charles  S.  Bird  of  East  Walpole,  Norfolk  County, 
Massachusetts,  formed  a  pack  which  has  now  developed  into  one  of 
two  regular  organizations  of  their  kind  in  America  managed  and 
hunted  entirely  by  women.  In  England  and  Scotland  there  are  one  or  two 
packs  of  harriers,  and  in  Ireland  a  pack  of  foxhounds,  which  have  a  woman 
as  Master ;  but  the  Endean  and  the  "  Castle  Hill,"  in  Albemarle  Coimty, 
Virginia,  are,  at  the  present  time,  the  only  packs  of  that  description  on  this 
side  of  the  water. 

Beginning  in  much  the  same  way  as  the  Middlesex  Hunt  —  with  a  few 
couples  of  beagles,  kept  for  his  own  and  his  friends*  amusement,  Mr.  Bird 
began  to  hunt  the  country  around  East  Walpole  quite  regularly,  at  first  two 
and  then  three  days  a  week.  Drag-hunting  was  adopted  as  being  the  best 
means  of  getting  a  gallop,  although  the  hounds  were,  and  still  are,  hunted  on 
hares  towards  the  close  of  the  season.  As  anyone  who  has  enjoyed  the 
experience  knows,  a  1 6-inch  beagle  can  run  a  well-laid  drag  line  at  a  pretty 
good  pace,  and  Mr.  Bird  soon  began  to  have  followers  from  among  his 
friends  and  neighbors. 

31 


THE    ENDEAN    BEAGLES 

Up  to  1 905,  he  continued  to  hunt  the  hounds,  and  then,  being  too  busy  to 
give  them  his  best  attention,  his  sister.  Miss  Edith  H.  Bird,  took  up  the  task, 
and  has  continued  to  hunt  them  herself  ever  since. 

Miss  Bird,  with  the  idea  of  making  her  sex  predominant  in  the  Hunt, 
persuaded  two  of  her  fnends.  Miss  Katharme  Roosevelt  and  Miss  Helen 
Homans,  to  act  as  whippers-in;  positions  which  they  have  filled  very  ably 
in  the  past  three  years.  The  pack  has  been  gradually  increased  by  impor- 
tation and  breeding,  till  at  the  present  writing  there  are  twelve  couples  of 
the  little  hounds  in  the  kennels. 

Miss  Bird's  country,  which  lies  some  ten  miles  away  from  the  Norfolk 
Hunt  kennels,  is  like  most  typical  New  England  countnes.  Small  enclosures, 
fenced  in  by  fair-sized  stone  walls,  make  the  jumping  pretty  trappy,  and  it 
takes  a  clever  horse  to  follow  the  pack  through  some  of  the  runs.  The 
members  of  the  Norfolk  Hunt  frequently  ride  over  from  Medfield  and  enjoy 
a  day  behind  the  beagles,  while  Miss  Bird  has  a  small  Field  of  her  own. 
The  pack  is  turned  out  in  the  most  workmanlike  manner  —  huntsman  and 
whippers-in  wearing  dark  green  habits  with  yellow  waistcoats.  The  Master 
has  always  carried  the  horn  herself,  never  allowing  her  kennel  huntsman  to 
do  anything  beyond  laying  the  drag. 

At  this  time  of  writing  there  is  some  talk  of  Miss  Bird's  resignation  as 
Master.  Whether  or  not  this  is  done,  the  authors  of  this  book  feel  that 
a  Hunt  managed  by  such  good  sportswomen  deserves  a  place  in  a  volume 
which  is  recording  the  Hunts  of  the  United  States  and  Canada. 


32 


The  Essex  Hounds 

(MR.  PFIZER'S) 

DISTINCTIVE  COLLAR - - aange  velvet 

EVENING  DREISS - Scarlet  coat,  orange  facings 

MASTER - - Charles  Pfizer,  Esq. 

SECRETARY - J.  C.  Wilmerding,  Esq. 

HUNTSMAN - WilKam  Howard 

WHIPPERS-IN - - - - - - \  '''•  ^^  ^*"'°* 

(  2nd,  Ljiriy  Dickinson 

HOUNDS  - - - - - - 35  couples.  English 

KENNELS  AND  POST-OFFICE - Gladstone,  N.  J. 

DAYS  OF  MEETING Wednesday  and  Saturday 

LENGTH  OF  SEASON - \  ^''^°^^'  '''  '°  J^""^"^  '«' 

I  March  1st  to  April  1 5  th 

J^  BOUT  the  time  that  Messrs.  Skinner  and  Donahue  were  hunt- 
/  ^    ing  their  hounds  at  Hackensack,  N.  J.  —  in  the  late  seventies  * — 
^       .^.  another  group  of  sportsmen  formed  what  eventually  developed 
into  the  Essex  County  Hunt  at  Montclair,  New  Jersey. 

The  hunting  began  with  beagles,  and  a  little  later  a  pack  of  harriers  was 
procured  and  hunted  up  to  the  end  of  1 879  under  the  Mastership  of  Mr.  F.  M. 
Wheeler.  This  proved  so  satisfactory  that  in  1 880  a  permanent  organization 
was  effected;  kennels  were  built  at  West  Orange,  N.  J.,  and  a  draft  of  English 
foxhounds  was  procured  from  the  Montreal  Hunt.  The  supporters  of  the 
Hunt  being  men  of  limited  time,  drag-hunting  was  the  form  of  sport  chosen, 
and  in  fact  the  country  is  hardly  suitable  for  the  best  results  in  fox-hunting, 
as  much  of  it  is  absolutely  unrideable;  and  then,  too,  the  coverts  are  very  large 
and  the  supply  of  foxes  is  limited. 

*  See  Chapter  on  The  Meadow  Brook. 

33 


THE    ESSEX 

Mr.  H.  N.  Munn  was  elected  Master  of  the  Essex  County  Hunt  and  re- 
mained in  office  during  1880  and  1881,  when  he  was  followed  by  Mr.  C. 
A.  Heckscher,  who  held  the  country  till  1 883.  From  1 884  to  1 888,  Mr.  E. 
P.  Thebaud  was  the  ruling  spirit,  and  finally  Mr.  J.  A.  Stewart  was  elected 
and  remained  in  office  till  1 890,  when  the  hounds  were  taken  over  by  the 
present  Master,  Mr.  Charles  Pfizer. 

Mr.  Stewart  was  the  last  M.  F.  H.  to  hold  office  under  the  original  organ- 
ization, for  when  the  present  Master  took  the  hounds  they  became  his  per- 
sonal property,  and  although  Mr.  Pfizer  accepts  a  small  subscription  from 
his  Field,  the  Essex  Hunt  has  been  practically  a  private  pack  since  1 890. 
Speaking  of  the  Hunt  since  that  period,  Mr.  Pfizer  has  kindly  furnished  the 
information  quoted,  as  follows : 

"  When  I  took  over  the  hounds,  I  dropped  the  word  '  County '  from  the 
fixture  card  and  called  it  the  Essex  Hunt,  as  I  gave  up  the  former  territory 
throughout  Essex  county  and  hunted  in  Morris  and  Somerset  counties. 

"  My  present  kennels  are  at  Gladstone,  N.  J.,  and  the  county  line  between 
Morris  and  Somerset  counties  runs  through  my  place.  During  the  first  five 
years  of  my  Mastership  I  changed  my  base  of  operations  several  times,  and 
the  pack  has  always  had  good  active  following ;  but  the  present  location 
is  a  really  satisfactory  one,  and  I  hope  to  continue  to  stay  here  for  many 
years.  The  country  is  not  too  far  from  New  York  and  is  an  attractive  point 
for  suburban  residences.  Our  Fields  average  some  twenty-five  men  on 
regular  days,  with  perhaps  ten  or  fifteen  more  on  holidays  and  gala  occa- 
sions. Sometimes  there  are  a  few  ladies  in  the  Field,  but  we  have  no  regular 
followers  of  the  fair  sex,  as  the  country  is  too  trying,  and  the  distances  to 
the  meets  and  back  to  the  kennels,  or  to  their  respective  homes,  too  far  to 
warrant  an  active  participation  in  the  sport." 

Mr.  Pfizer's  country  is  mostly  hill  and  dale  —  some  of  it  very  rough  to 

ride  over.     This  is  the  main  objection  to  fox-hunting ;  and  although  when 

the  snow  has  fallen,  the  hounds  are  sometimes  taken  out  after  foxes,  it  is  not, 

as  a  rule,  a  successful  experiment.     As  we  all  know,  no  drag  pack  can  show 

good  sport  fox-hunting,  and  as  Mr.  Pfizer's  hounds  are  primarily  draghounds 

they  are,  of  course,  no  exception  to  this  rule. 

34 


CHARLES  PFIZER,   ESQ.,  M.F.H. 


HUNT  STAFF  AND  HOUNDS 


ON  TtlE  WAY  HOME 


THE    ESSEX 

TTie  drag-hunting  is  very  good.  Lines  are  laid  in  the  valleys,  which  are 
grassland  and  good  going,  the  fences  for  the  most  part  being  post-and-rails, 
with  here  and  there  a  stone  wall  sandwached  in,  and  a  well-schooled,  tem- 
perate horse  has  been  found  to  be  best  suited  to  the  country. 

The  landowners  are  good  sportsmen  and  encourage  the  hunting,  turning  out 
in  goodly  numbers  on  points  of  vantage  to  see  the  Hunt  on  a  holiday.  As 
yet,  they  do  not  participate,  for  lack  of  suitable  mounts  and  because  of  inex- 
perience, but  one  can  never  tell  what  future  years  will  bring  forth,  and  the 
Master  may  yet  have  the  pleasure  of  seeing  them  in  the  Field. 

In  1 90 1 ,  and  during  the  four  following  seasons,  Mr.  Pfizer  took  a  few 
couples  of  his  draghounds  to  Southampton,  Long  Island.  They  were  hunted 
there,  in  September  and  October,  with  moderate  success,  until  1 906,  when, 
finding  that  more  satisfactory  hunting  could  be  obtained  in  the  home  country, 
Mr.  Pfizer  gave  up  this  short  autumn  season  on  Long  Island;  the  result 
being  the  organization  of  the  Suffolk  County  Hunt,  which  now  hunts  that 
country. 

As  this  article  goes  to  press,  the  following  note  of  interest  is  received  from 
Mr.  Pfizer : 

"  I  am  now  keeping  a  separate  pack  of  English  foxhounds  for  hunting  native 
foxes,  which  are  on  the  increase,  owing  to  careful  stocking  of  some  coverts 
every  spring ;  and  if  the  poor  beasts  do  not  fall  a  prey  to  the  local  gunners, 
active  fox-hunting  after  the  real  article — not  a  bagman — will  be  finally  estab- 
lished in  our  section.  I  am  trying  to  work  up  some  general  interest  among  the 
landowners,  and  have  every  hope  that  it  will  be  a  success  in  future  years." 


35 


The  Genesee  Valley  Hunt 

(MAJOR  WADSWORTH'S  HOUNDS) 

DISTINCTIVE  UNIFORM Blue  coat,  green  collar,  buff  facings. 

EVENING  DRESS - Scarlet  coat,  green  collar 

MASTER - Major  W.  Austin  Wadsworth 

SECRETARY - H.  V.  Colt.  Esq.,  Geneseo.  N.  Y. 

HUNTSMAN - George  Poole 

{1  St,  John  Mahoney 
2nd,  James  Totten 
3rd,  Walter  Rebban 

HOUNDS - - 27  couples.  English 

KENNEl^  AND  POST-OFFICE - Geneseo.  N.  Y. 

DAYS  OF  MEETING Tuesday,  Thursday  and  Saturday 

LENGTH  OF  SEASON - October  1 5  ih  to  February  1st 


IN  the  last  ten  years  of  the  eighteenth  century.  General  James  S. 
Wadsworth  came  from  Connecticut  to  the  Genesee  Valley  in  western 
New  York,  and  about  this  time  the  Fitzhughs  moved  to  the  same  region 
from  the  South,  bringing  with  them  all  the  southerner's  fondness  for  the 
sport  of  fox-hunting.  The  Wadsworths  have  increased  their  property 
holdings  from  year  to  year,  each  generation  doing  its  utmost  to  preserve 
them. 

The  farmers  in  the  "Valley"  had  owned  and  hunted  foxhounds  for  some 
lime,  but  it  was  not  until  1 876  that  the  Genesee  Valley  Hunt  was  formed, 
and  since  that  time  Major  William  Austin  Wadsworth  of  Geneseo,  N.  Y., 
has  been  the  Master. 

The  Genesee  Valley  Hunt  is,  and  has  been  since  its  beginning.  Major 
Wadsworth's  private  Hunt.  He  owns  the  hounds,  the  kennels,  the  majority  of 
the  coverts,  and  defrays  all  expenses  of  every  kind,  never  taking  any  sub- 
scriptions, except  to  the  damage  fund,  and  the  Field  may  be  called  Major 

36 


MAJOR  \V,   AUSTIN  WADSWORTH,  M.F.H. 


THE    GENESEE    VALLEY 

Wadsworth's  guests  in  every  sense  of  the  word,  and  can  hardly  be  termed  a 
club. 

Major  Wadsworth  did  not  advertise  his  meets  or  issue  regular  cards  until 
1880,  and  since  that  time  the  hounds  have  been  out  always  tv«ce,  and 
generally  three  times  a  week  during  the  season,  which  lasts  from  October 
15th  well  into  February.  Of  course,  during  this  time  there  are  many 
days  when  the  ground  is  dry  and  frozen  and  hunting  is  impossible;  but  the 
best  of  sport  is  often  had  when  the  ground  is  covered  with  snow,  and  the 
pack  averages  two  runs  a  week  through  the  season. 

The  country  is  full  of  woodchuck  holes,  and  as  the  Master  objects  to 
digging,  few  foxes  are  killed ;  but  they  are  apt  to  give  long,  hard  runs  before 
going  to  ground,  and  so  long  as  they  are  not  lost  while  they  are  above  ground, 
honour  is  safe. 

The  country  hunted  is  a  large  one,  although  the  hounds  rarely  go  north  of 
Honeoye  Creek,  south  of  Tuscarora,  east  of  Hemlock  Lake  or  west  of 
Oatka  Valley.  The  land  is  usually  open — well-cultivated  farms  with  patches 
of  timber  —  but  the  uplands  are  cut  in  places  by  deep  ravines  and  gullies, 
which  are  much  more  popular  with  the  foxes  than  with  their  pursuers.  The 
lowlands  along  the  river  have  enormous  fields,  often  two  or  three  hundred 
acres  in  extent,  so  that  a  horse  that  can  extend  himself,  as  well  as  one  that 
can  climb  and  slide  down  hill,  is  needed. 

The  local  landowners  compose  a  large  percentage  of  the  Field,  and  the 
farmers  throughout  the  country  are  long-suffering  and  kindly  disposed ;  but 
the  increase  of  wire  fencing  is  such  that  Major  Wadsworth  believes  the 
sport  to  be  hopelessly  doomed  in  the  years  to  come,  and  even  now,  some  of 
the  best  country,  though  full  of  foxes,  is  practically  unrideable. 

The  Genesee  Valley  Hunt  Club  was  organized  in  1 88 1  by  "  gentlemen 
who  ride  with  Major  Wadsworth's  hounds,"  and  is  absolutely  confined  to 
those  who  have  so  ridden.  They  have  nothing  to  do  with  the  management 
of  the  hounds,  but  give  equestrian  sports  on  July  4th  and  a  Horse  Show  in 
the  autumn,  and  contribute  to  the  damage  fund. 

Major  Wadsworth,  who  has  been  in  office  as  Master  longer  than  anyone 
else  in  America,  is  an  ideal  man  for  the  position,  an  enthusiastic  apostle  of 

37 


THE    GENESEE    VALLEY 

the  sport,  believing  that  with  the  growing  scarcity  of  game  it  is  by  far  the 
best  and  most  democratic  country  amusement.  He  has  been  much  more 
anxious  to  interest  his  neighbors  than  to  call  in  the  outsiders,  and,  to  use  his 
own  words,  "  would  rather  see  a  farmer's  boy  on  a  mule  at  a  meet  than  the 
most  elaborate  creation  of  the  London  tailor."  The  so-called  "  qualifier," 
who  takes  his  would-be  steeplechaser  to  the  meet,  lets  him  have  a  look  at 
the  hounds  and  larks  him  over  a  few  fences  in  sight  of  the  Master  in  order 
to  obtain  a  so-called  "hunter's  certificate"  is  an  individual  for  whom  he  has 
no  use.     To  quote  his  own  remarks  on  the  subject: 

"  I  don't  know  that  the  Genesee  Valley  Hunt  is  a  racing  club,  or  ever 
intends  to  give  race  meetings.     I  consider  it  a  fox-hunting  club. 

"  I  have  always  treated  the  racing  people  with  courtesy,  but  as  every 
Master  of  Hounds  knows,  the  qualifying  of  hunters  for  steeplechase  pur- 
poses is  a  humbug.  The  horses  so  qualified  are  not  and  never  have  been 
hunters,  and  everyone  knows  it.  They  are  merely  a  certain  class  of  steeple- 
chasers, a  different  animal,  for  instance,  from  that  which  should  be  shown  in 
the  prize  ring  as  a  hunter,  so  I  think  the  best  way  is  to  keep  the  two  things 
separate,  and  let  the  men  who  want  to  race,  race ;  and  the  men  who  Wcint 
to  hunt,  hunt.     Let  each  define  a  hunter  as  he  chooses." 

Major  Wadsworth's  hatred  of  the  qualifier  is  such  that,  to  quote  him 
again,  "  I  have  invented  that  splendid  aggregation  (?),  the  Livingston  County 
Draghounds,  to  keep  the  professional  dealers  and  racing  men's  jocks  out  of 
my  Fields." 

Very  different  is  Major  Wadsworth's  feeling  for  the  men  who  hunt.  He 
has  spared  neither  trouble  nor  expense  to  get  together  a  pack  which  will 
show  them  the  best  sport.  His  hounds  are  for  the  most  part  of  pure  English 
blood,  although  he  states  that  some  of  his  best  have  a  slight  infusion  of  the 
American  in  them.  This,  however,  is  so  slight  that  no  one  could  tell  from 
looking  at  the  hounds  that  it  existed.  In  1 880,  the  first  draft  came  from  the 
Meath,  followed  in  1 884  by  a  draft  from  Lord  Fitzhardinge's,  among  which 
he  mentions,  — 

"Ruler,"  1876;  "Viscount,"  "Frantic,"  and  "Castor,"  1880;  and 
"  Vocal,"  1 88 1 ,  as  being  exceptionally  useful. 

38 


THE    GENESEE    VALLEY 

In  1 887,  a  new  draft  came  from  Sir  Bacfie  Cunard's,  now  Mr.  Femie's, 
among  whicfi  Major  Wadsworth  says  there  were  a  number  of  most  excel- 
lent hounds,  but  which  were  rather  light  of  tongue.  To  rectify  this  defect, 
he  bred  to  hounds  from  Lord  Tredegar's  and  from  the  Duke  of  Beaufort's, 
with  good  results,  importing  small  drafts  from  time  to  time  until  1 894 ;  when 
a  friend,  Captain  Martin  of  Geneseo,  picked  up  in  England  a  draft  from 
the  Holderness,  which  did  the  pack  a  lot  of  good.  With  all  this  good 
material  as  a  basis.  Major  Wadsworth  has  bred  a  pack  second  to  none  in 
America,  and  although  it  suffered  badly  from  the  rabies  in  1 902,  he  has 
maintained  its  high  standard  of  excellence.  On  the  flags,  too,  he  has  met 
with  great  success,  winning  at  Madison  Square  Garden  in  1 899  and  1 902, 
with  home-bred  hounds,  and  in  1 906  and  1 907  with  a  mixed  lot. 

The  Hunt  has  never  adopted  scarlet  coats,  except  for  evening  dress,  and 
although  many  of  the  Field  hunt  in  mufti,  the  older  members  and  the  Hunt 
steiff  still  wear  the  dark  blue  coats  and  buff  facings  and  waistcoats  which 
have  always  been  its  uniform. 

The  secret  of  Major  Wadsworth's  success  is  perhaps  his  thoughtful  and 
painstaking  treatment  of  the  farmers,  and  the  firm,  though  kindly  manner  in 
which  he  rules  over  his  Field.  These  qualities  perhaps  are  best  epitomized 
in  his  "  Bible ,"  which  is  given  below  in  full. 

Of  the  Farmer: 

"  You  have  no  business  on  a  man's  land,  but  are  there  by  his  sufferance 
and  he  is  entitled  to  every  consideration.  It  is  no  excuse  that  you  are  in  a 
hurry.  It  is  much  better  for  the  Hunt  that  you  should  be  left  behind  than 
that  a  farmer  should  be  injured. 

"  If  you  take  down  a  reiil,  put  it  back.     If  you  open  a  gate,  shut  it. 

"  If  you  break  a  fence,  or  do  any  damage  which  you  cannot  repair,  you 
should  report  it  at  once  to  the  responsible  officers  of  the  Hunt,  that  it  may 
be  made  good. 

"  Although  you  may  feel  convinced  that  it  improves  wheat  to  ride  over 
it,  the  opinion  is  not  diffiised  or  popular ;  and  the  fact  that  some  fool  has 
gone  ahead  is  no  excuse;  it  only  makes  matters  worse. 

"  The  spectacle  of  a  lot  of  men,  following  another's  tracks  across  a  wheat- 

39 


THE    GENESEE    VALLEY 

field  and  killing  hopelessly  the  young  plants,  which  the  first  man  has  proba- 
bly injured  but  slightly,  is  too  conducive  to  profanity  to  be  edifying  in  any 
community. 

"You  may  think  that  the  honest  farmer  deems  it  a  privilege  to  leave  his 
life  of  luxurious  idleness  and  travel  around  half  the  night  in  the  mud  for 
horses  which  have  got  out,  or  spend  days  sorting  the  sheep  which  have  got 
mixed  by  your  leaving  his  gates  open  or  fences  down :  you  are  mistaken ; 
he  doesn't. 

Of  the  Master: 

"  The  M.  F.  H.  is  a  great  and  mystic  personage,  to  be  lowly,  meekly  and 
reverently  looked  up  to,  helped,  considered  and  given  the  right  of  way  at 
all  times.  His  ways  are  not  as  other  men's  ways,  and  his  knowledge  and 
actions  are  not  to  be  judged  by  their  standards.  All  that  can  be  asked  of 
him  is  that  he  furnish  good  sport ;  and  as  long  as  he  does  that,  he  is  amen- 
able to  no  criticism,  subject  to  no  law  and  fettered  by  no  conventionality 
while  in  the  field. 

"  He  is  supposed  by  courtesy  to  know  more  about  his  own  hounds  than 
outsiders;  and  all  hallooing,  calling,  and  attempts  at  hunting  them  by  others, 
are  not  only  very  bad  manners,  but  are  apt  to  spoil  sport. 

"  As  a  general  rule,  he  can  enjoy  your  conversation  and  society  more 
when  not  in  the  field,  with  the  hounds,  riders,  foxes  and  damages  on  his 
mind. 

"  N.  B.  The  proffer  of  a  flask  is  not  '  conversation,*  within  the  meaning 
of  the  above. 

Of  the  Fox: 

"  Don't  tag  after  the  first  whipper-in  and  make  one  of  a  line  of  sentries 
around  a  covert.     How  can  a  fox  break  cover,  if  you  do  ? 

"  Keep  your  mouth  shut  when  you  see  a  fox  until  he  is  well  away,  then, 
if  you  are  sure  it  is  the  hunted  fox,  stand  still,  as  nearly  on  his  line  as  possi- 
ble, and  yell  for  all  you  are  worth. 

"  Don't  cap  on  the  first  hounds,  but  let  the  huntsman  bring  up  the  pack. 

"  Don't  gallop  after  the  fox  by  yourself :  if  you  caught  him  alone  he  might 
bite  you. 

40 


THE    GENESEE    VALLEY 

"  Don't  give  tongue  on  a  woodchuck:  it  will  cause  you  humiliation.  There 
is  a  difference  in  the  tails. 

Of  the  Hounds: 

"  Keep  away  from  them  at  all  times  and  every  time.  Even  if  you  con- 
sider them  worthless,  the  Master  may  be  quaintly  indifferent  to  your  opinion; 
and  as  the  quietest  horse  will  kick  at  a  strange  dog,  and  the  stupidest  dog 
distrust  a  strange  horse,  keep  away. 

"  Stand  still  at  a  check  and  give  them  a  chance  to  work.  No  hound  can 
hunt  while  figuring  the  odds  of  being  bitten,  kicked  or  stepped  on;  and  if  the 
Field  keep  pressing  them  in  any  direction,  however  slowly,  the  benighted 
beasts  are  capable  of  thinking  there  is  a  rational  cause  for  it. 

"  Keep  away  from  the  huntsman  also,  that  he  may  be  in  full  view  and 
the  hounds  see  him  and  follow  his  movements  and  signals. 

"  Don't  get  between  him  and  the  whippers-in  on  the  road.  There  are 
miles  of  it,  before  and  behind,  where  your  equestrianism  v«ll  be  more  appre- 
ciated. 

Of  the  Rider: 

"  Don't  say  '  'ware  horse '  to  the  hound,  but  '  'ware  hound '  to  the  horse. 

"  It  is  never  any  excuse  that  you  cannot  hold  your  horse.  You  have  no 
more  business  to  bring  out  a  horse  you  cannot  hold  than  you  have  a  biter 
or  a  kicker.     If  you  cannot  hold  him,  go  home ! 

"  Never  follow  a  man  closely,  particularly  over  a  jump.  If  he  should  fall 
when  alone,  you  might  kill  him  while  helpless. 

"  Take  your  own  line  and  keep  it. 

"  Everybody  is  supposed  to  be  entitled  to  the  panel  in  front  of  him.  If 
you  don't  like  yours,  you  must  not  take  another  man's  till  your  turn." 

A  copy  of  the  above,  together  with  a  fine  map  of  the  country,  showing 
every  road,  lane,  covert,  shoeing-forge,  etc.,  is  given  to  each  member  of 
Major  Wadsworth's  Field,  and  the  rules  stated  therein  are  enforced  to  the 
letter,  though  it  is  scarcely  ever  necessary  for  the  Master  to  speak  a  second 
time,  so  beloved  is  he  of  his  followers. 

The  authors  feel  that  they  can  hardly  say  enough  of  Major  Wadsworth's 
interest  in  the  welfare  of  the  dwellers  in  the  "  Valley." 

4\ 


THE    GENESEE    VALLEY 

Owning,  as  he  does,  such  a  vast  estate,  he  is  placed  in  almost  a  paternal 
relation  towards  his  tenants  and  neighbors,  who  value  very  highly  his  friend- 
ship and  kindly  counsel  on  all  matters,  agricultural  and  otherwise. 

All  fox-hunters  who  have  the  pleasure  of  knowing  the  Master  of  the 
Genesee  Valley  will,  we  feel  sure,  agree  with  us  in  thinking  that  no  more 
suitable  dedication  could  be  found  than  that  which  heads  this  volume. 


42 


The  Grafton  Hounds 

(MR.  SMITH'S) 

DISTINCTIVE  UNIFORM Gray 

EVENING  DRESS Scarlet  coat,  gray  collar 

MASTER Harry  W.  Smith,  Esq.,  Grafton,  Mass. 

HUNTSMAN :. The  Master 

WHIPPERS-IN - \  l'\  S  Gibree 

(  2nd,  N.  Elsey 

HOUNDS - 1  5  couples,  American 

KENNELS  AND  POST-OFFICE Grahon,  Worcester  County,  Mass. 

DAYS  OF  MEETING - - Three  days  a  week 

LENGTH  OF  SEASON - August  1st  to  January  1st 


THE  Grafton  Hounds,  which  are  a  private  pack,  the  property  of 
Mr.  Harry  W.  Smith,  were  first  established  in  1904.  The 
Grafton  Country  Club,  which  was  in  some  ways  the  excuse  for 
the  Grafton  Hounds,  had  been  formed  some  years  earlier,  and  among  the 
other  sports  encouraged  there,  fox-hunting  took  a  prominent  place. 

Mr.  Smith,  at  one  time  an  extensive  breeder  of  wire  haired  fox-terriers, 
and  later  an  amateur  trainer  and  jockey  of  much  note,  seemed  to  be  ad- 
mirably fitted  for  the  position  of  M.  F.  H.,  and  when  he  offered  the  Club 
the  use  of  his  small  private  pack  —  to  be  called  the  Grafton  Hounds  —  they 
were  most  wiilmg  to  accept. 

Becoming  very  much  interested  in  the  American  type  of  foxhounds,  Mr. 
Smith  endeavored,  in  1 904,  to  rejuvenate  the  Brunswick  Fur  Club,  under 
the  name  of  the  Brunswick  Foxhound  Club,  and  to  make  its  aim  the  establish- 
ing of  an  American  type  of  foxhound.  Men  like  Thomas  Hitchcock,  Jr., 
James  Maddux  and  General  Edward  Morrell  were  induced  to  join  the  Club, 
and  Mr.  Smith  brought  before  a  meeting  the  following  motion : — 

"  Voted,  that  the  standard  of  American  Foxhounds  as  adopted  by  the 

43 


THE    GRAFTON 

Club,  April  1  7th,  1 894,  be  construed  by  the  Club  to  call  for  that  type  of 
hound  which  shall  show  '  class ; '  which  word  signifies  the  highest  percent- 
age of  the  necessary  qualities  needed  in  foxhounds  for  field  use  in  America. 

"  Voted,  that  the  Judges,  duly  authorized  by  the  Brunswick  Foxhound 
Club,  be  advised  of  this  ruling  and  the  same  be  enrolled  in  the  records  of 
the  Club,  and  when  the  American  Foxhound  standard  is  next  printed,  same 
be  added  in  a  paragraph  before  the  Summary." 

In  a  letter  to  the  Rider  and  driver,  setting  forth  the  advantages  of  this 
motion,  Mr.  Smith  stated,  —  "  If  this  rule  is  going  to  hurt  anyone  it  will  hurt 
me,  and  I  am  perfectly  willing  it  should.  1  can  speak  very  plainly  on  the 
matter,  as  last  year  I  won  a  number  of  ribbons,  —  more,  I  believe,  than  any 
other  exhibitor, —  at  the  Brunswick  Fur  Club  Foxhound  Show,  The  rac- 
ing type  is,  in  my  opinion,  more  typical  of  the  American  hound  than  the 
half  or  three-quarter  bred  English  hound,  such  as  McGregor's  'Jack.'  I 
am  running  these  hounds  continually  in  the  field,  and  I  am  perfectly  frank  in 
saying  that  the  hghter  type,  such  as  my  'Sinner,'  Walker's  'Alsie,'  and 
Hitchcock's  '  Judy '  seem  to  me  to  be  preferable  for  work. 

"  At  the  Trials  last  year  (1 903),  which  were  so  hotly  contested,  the  heavy 
type  of  hound  was  not  placed.  At  the  first  Hound  Show,  E.  H.  Walker 
entered  '  Alsie '  and  she  was  turned  out  without  a  ribbon.  At  the  same 
show   Mr.  Hitchcock  entered  '  Crocker,'  who  was  similarly  disposed  of. 

"  Here  are  two  breeders  who  own  foxhounds,  not  to  look  at,  but  to  kill 
foxes,  which  is  the  crovrang  point  of  all.  Shall  we  hold  to  the  heavy 
English  type,  or  shall  we  go  to  the  racing  type,  the  type  which  is  the 
successful  hound  to  kill  a  fox,  and  acknowledged  so  by  all  and  proven  so 
by  our  own  trials  ?  I  shall  also  put  before  the  Club  the  following  motion, 
in  case  the  members  decide  that  it  is  inadvisable  to  construe  the  standard  as 
I  have  asked  above ; 

" '  Voted,  that  a  Committee  composed  of  Dr.  A.  C.  Heffenger,  Thomas 
Hitchcock,  Jr..  R.  D.  Perry,  J.  K.  Maddux,  R.  F.  Perkins  and  Harry  W. 
Smith,  members  of  the  Brunswick  Foxhound  Club,  E.  H.  Walker  of  Ken- 
tucky and  C.  Floyd  Huff  of  Hot  Springs,  Arkansas,  be  appointed  to  formu- 
late a  standard  for  foxhounds,  and  the  standard  so  formulated  by  them  is  to 

44 


THE    GRAFTON 

be  considered  as  adopted  by  the  Brunswick  Foxhound  Club  by  a  vote 
authorizing  the  Committee.' 

"  It  is  far  better  to  right  an  error  at  the  beginning  than  it  is  at  the  end.  The 
Brunswick  Foxhound  Club,  in  the  past,  has  simply  been  known  about  New 
England  ....  and  the  fact  that  its  standard  was  adopted  by  the  American 
Kennel  Club,  and  that  the  Brunswick  Foxhound  Club  can  authorize  a  stand- 
ard is  known  to  few.  This  being  the  situation,  it  seems  to  me  wise  to  allow 
the  Southerners,  who  have  put  more  time,  thought  and  care  into  the  breeding 
of  hounds  for  killing  the  fox  than  all  the  rest  combined,  to  have  their  type 
acknowledged." 

This  letter  brought  forth  a  storm  of  criticism  from  the  supporters  of  the 
English  hound,  who,  naturally  enough,  claimed  that  English  hounds,  which 
had  been  bred  to  the  game  with  more  care  and  for  a  longer  period  than 
any  in  the  world,  could  and  did  kill  foxes  in  America  as  well  as  in  Eng- 
land ;  to  which  Mr.  Smith  answered  that  he  very  much  doubted  the  actual 
kills  by  any  English  pack  on  this  side  of  the  water. 

It  would  be  time  thrown  away  to  go  into  a  detailed  account  of  the 
argument  which  followed  m  the  columns  of  the  Rider  and  driver.  To  cut 
a  long  story  short,  the  result  was  the  Foxhound  Match  which  took  place  in 
the  Piedmont  Valley,  Virginia,  in  November  1 905,  in  which  Mr.  Smith's 
home-bred  pack  represented  the  American  hound  and  the  Middlesex  Fox- 
hounds, a  draft  pack  —  the  English. 

Neither  pack  killed  and,  although  the  Grafton  hounds  were  awarded  the 
victory,  neither  Master  altered  his  opinion  as  to  the  comparative  merit  of 
the  two  types. 

While  these  opinions  of  Mr.  Smith's  are  not  directly  history  of  the  Graf- 
ton, they  are  given  because  they  show  the  aims  of  its  Master,  who  has  kept 
on  breeding  to  a  distinct  type  year  after  year,  and  has  produced  a  pack 
which,  for  similarity  of  size,  conformation  and  color  it  would  be  hard  to 
beat.  Whether  or  not  they  are  the  true  type  of  American  hound  it  is  diffi- 
cult to  say.  Mr.  Smith  contends  that  they  are,  but  in  a  breed  where  the 
individuals  differ  so  widely,  who  shall  say  which  is  the  best  ? 

The  Brunswick  Foxhound  Club,  an  organization  made  up  of  owners  of  fox- 

45 


THE    GRAFTON 

hounds  throughout  New  England,  with  a  scattering  of  outside  members,  has 
done,  and  is  doing,  the  best  it  can ;  but  no  two  judges  think  alike,  and  so  long 
as  American  hound  men  keep  coming  to  the  owners  of  English  hounds  for 
a  bit  of  their  good  blood  there  will  be  no  definite  standard. 

In  1 905,  just  prior  to  the  Match,  a  Hound  Show  was  held  at  Grafton, 
the  classification  being  similar  to  that  of  the  Peterboro  Hound  Show  in 
England,  and  the  arrangements  much  the  same  on  a  small  scale.  There 
were  a  few  American  hounds,  and  only  two  English  packs  —  the  Norfolk 
and  the  Middlesex  —  were  represented ;  but  the  Show,  which  was  held  in 
conjunction  with  the  Grafton  Country  Club  Horse  Show,  was  a  distinct 
success,  and  led  to  the  holding,  in  the  following  year,  of  the  National  Fox- 
hound Show  at  South  Lincoln,  which  has  now  become  an  annual  fixture. 

Mr.  Smith  sold  about  six  couples  of  his  hounds  to  the  Orange  County 
Hunt,  and  they  were  kept  in  the  South  and  hunted  in  their  Virginia  country 
with  great  success,  while  he  retained  a  sufficient  number  of  bitches  to  breed 
his  present  pack,  which  consists  of  fifteen  couples.  These  hounds  are  Bel- 
voir  tan  in  color  and  are  some  twenty  inches  in  height  at  the  shoulder  — 
about  the  size  of  English  harriers. 

The  home  country  surrounding  the  Grafton  kennels  in  Massachusetts,  is 
the  worst  possible  for  fox-hunting.  Very  rough  pastures,  enclosed  by  big, 
ragged  stone  walls,  furnishing  the  only  open  country,  and  a  series  of  immense 
swamps  and  woodlands  make  it  impossible  to  follow  hounds  fairly. 

Mr.  Smith  thinks  that  the  best  type  of  horse  is  a  well-mannered,  clean- 
bred,  "  which  cannot  only  stand  off  and  jump,  but  also  stand  still  and  jump,  and 
creep  if  necessary."  The  attitude  of  the  landowners  is  most  satisfactory, 
and  there  never  has  been,  m  Grafton,  Sutton,  Millbury,  or  the  adjoining 
townships,  anything  but  the  pleasantest  feeling  toward  the  Hunt. 

In  the  autumn  of  1 907,  Major  W.  Austin  Wadsworth,  Master  of  the 
Genesee  Valley  Hunt,  offered  to  loan  to  Mr.  Smith  a  portion  of  his  country, 
lying  some  fifteen  miles  from  his  kennels,  and  known  as  the  "  Upland 
country,"  and  this  proposition  Mr.  Smith  very  gladly  accepted,  taking  his 
hounds  there  for  the  season  of  1907-8,  and  making  his  headquarters  at  the 
Big  Tree  Inn  at  Geneseo.     The  Grafton  went  out  on  alternate  days  with 

46 


THE    GRAFTON 

the  Genesee  Valley,  thus  giving  the  members  and  subscribers  a  chance  to 
hunt  every  day  in  the  week.  This  plan  worked  well,  and  Mr.  Smith  writes 
that  he  intends  to  go  there  another  season,  after  finishing  his  cubbing  in 
Massachusetts. 

The  Genesee  "  Upland  country  "  is  chiefly  grass  and  pasture,  with  some 
large  woodlands  and  almost  no  plough;  post-and-rail  fences,  interspersed 
with  a  few  stump-fences  and  very  little  wire,  forming  the  majority  of  the 
enclosures,  and  it  requires  a  bold,  fast,  big-jumping  horse  to  live  with  hounds. 

To  the  Master  of  the  Grafton  is  due,  more  than  to  any  other  one  man  in 
the  United  States,  the  credit  for  a  long  needed  organization,  as  he  was  in- 
strumental in  calling  a  meeting  which  led  to  the  formation  of  The  Masters 
of  Foxhounds  Association  of  America. 


47 


The  Green  River  Hunt 


MASTER - - - Frank  Sherman  Peer,  Esq. 

SECRETARY Wentworth  C.  Bacon,  Esq.,  Greenfield,  Mass. 

HUNTSMAN The  Master 

HON.WHIPPERS-IN \  l^'' ^""'^"'t^t^-^'T'  ^'''" 

(  Znd,   1  homas  W.  King,  Lsq. 

HOUNDS 1 2  couples,  English 

KENNELS  AND  POST-OFFICE Greenfield,  Mass. 

DAYS  OF  MEETING - - Three  days  a  week 

LENGTH  OF  SEASON - September  1st  to  December  1st 


EARLY  in  the  spring  of  1907,  some  lovers  of  fox-hunting,  Mr. 
Frank  Sherman  Peer,  Mr.  Wentworth  C.  Bacon,  and  Mr. 
Thomas  W.  King,  who  were  living  in  Greenfield,  Massachu- 
setts, determined  to  start  a  small  pack  of  hounds  to  hunt  the  country  lying  in 
the  valley  of  the  Green  River. 

Greenfield  is  a  great  centre  for  the  sheep-raising  farmers  of  Massachusetts, 
and  the  country,  which  is  the  upper  end  of  the  Connecticut  Valley  and 
comparatively  free  from  vAre,  affords  a  pretty  good  opportunity  for  fox-  and- 
drag-hunting.  Foxes  are  very  plentiful,  but  as  is  the  case  in  most  parts  of 
Massachusetts,  coverts  are  so  large  and  dense  that  it  is  practically  impossible 
to  follow  hounds  closely  for  any  distance,  a  condition  which  makes  a  certain 
amount  of  drag-hunting  necessary  to  satisfy  the  demand  for  sport.  Mr.  Peer, 
the  M.  F.  H.,  and  Mr.  Bacon,  who  are  the  leading  spirits  in  this  little  or- 
ganization, secured  a  couple  of  drafts  of  good  working  hounds  from  the  Mid- 
dlesex, and,  if  they  have  luck,  should  in  time  breed  a  good  pack  from  these. 
Even  at  present,  they  manage  to  give  sport  to  a  small  but  enthusiastic  Field 
of  ladies  and  gentlemen,  hunting  both  fox  and  drag.  All  things  must  have  a 
beginning,  and  the  Green  River  Hunt  has  two  qualifications  which  ought  to 

48 


FRANK  SHERMAN  PEER,    ESQ.,    M.F.H. 


THE    GREEN    RIVER 

lead  to  much  improvement  in  the  future,  to  wit :  plenty  of  enthusiasm  and  a 
good  country. 

The  Master  himself  is  a  warm  supporter  of  English  hounds,  and  having 
made  a  considerable  study  of  them  in  their  home  country,  has  imported  a 
great  many  for  the  other  Masters  in  America.  He  is  an  advocate  of  their 
use  in  the  field  in  this  country,  holding,  in  common  with  many  others,  that 
their  lack  of  cold-scenting  ability  is  more  than  made  up  for  by  their  easy 
control  while  at  work. 

Mr.  Peer  was  chosen  to  act  as  Judge  of  English  foxhounds  at  the  first 
National  Hound  Show,  1 906. 


49 


The  Green  Spring  Valley  Hunt 

DISTINCTIVE  COLLAR - Green 

EVENING  DRESS Scarlet  coat,  green  collar 

MASTER - Redmond  C  Stewart,  Esq. 

SECRETARY .- ---  -- Randolph  Barton,  Jr.,  Esq.,  Baltimore,  Md. 

HUNTSMAN - The  Master 

HON.  WHIPPERS-IN S  J'!"  ^'^^J^'  ^°"'f-  ^J^' 

(  Znd,  Jervis  Spencer,  Jr.,  Esq. 

KENNELMAN Thomas  Perry 

HOI  INnS  )  ^"^  '"^  couples,  American,  with 

(  recent  crosses  of  English  blood. 

KENNELS - Garrison,  Md. 

FIAILWAY  STATION  Garrison  Forest  Station,  Md. 

POST-OFFICE - - - GarrUon.  Md. 

DAYS  OF  MEETING ~ - Tuesday,  Thursday  and  Saturday 

LENGTH  OF  SEASON October  1st  to  April  1st 

DURING  the  autumn  of  1 892,  a  number  of  gentlemen  met  in 
Baltimore,  Maryland,  and  founded  the  Green  Spring  Valley 
Hunt.  Among  these  were  John  McHenry,  Randolph  Barton, 
Jr.,  Horace  White,  E.  Lynn  Painter,  Redmond  C.  Stewart,  the  present 
Master ;  W.  Plunket  Stewart,  James  McK.  Merryman,  William  B.  Cockey, 
C.  Morton  Stewart,  Jr.,  Robert  N.  Elder,  William  V.  Elder,  G.  H.  Stirling, 
Arthur  Craddock  and  D.  F.  Savage. 

In  all  there  was  a  membership  of  twenty-seven,  most  of  whom  were  men 
in  active  business  in  Baltimore,  and  as  this  is,  and  always  has  been  the  case, 
every  effort  is  made  to  have  sport  outside  of  regular  business  hours.  The 
Hunt  staff,  too,  has  always  been  composed  of  members,  no  regular  Hunt  ser- 
vants having  ever  been  employed  except  a  kennelman,  who  takes  charge  of 

hounds  in  the  kennels. 

50 


REDMOND  C.   STEWART,   ESQ.,   M.F.H. 


THE    GREEN    SPRING    VALLEY 

Mr.  Redmond  C.  Stewart,  who  lives  near  the  latter,  was  elected  Master 
at  the  first  meeting  and  has  continued  to  hold  that  position  ever  since,  hunt- 
ing the  hounds  himself  during  the  entire  period.  His  brother,  Mr.  W. 
Plunket  Stewart,  was  the  only  whipper-in  until  1 894,  when  Mr.  H.  Carroll 
Brown  was  appointed  second  whipper-in  until  1 903 ;  but  in  1 899,  Mr. 
Stewart  appointed  another  whipper-in  in  the  person  of  Mr.  Frank  A.  Bonsai, 
who  took  Mr.  Brown's  place  when  the  latter  resigned,  in  1 903,  and  Mr. 
Plunket  Stewart's  place  on  his  resignation,  in  1906.  Mr.  Jervis  Spencer 
was  then  appointed  second  whipper-in  and  since  that  time  only  two  whippers- 
in  have  been  on  the  active  list. 

As  is  the  case  in  most  southern  Hunts,  Mr.  Stewart  began  by  using  na- 
tive hounds,  believing,  as  he  still  does,  that  they  possessed  the  most  suitable 
qualities  for  fox-hunting  in  Maryland.  After  eight  or  ten  years  of  experience, 
however,  with  these  hounds,  he  has  come  to  the  conclusion  that  a  certain 
amount  of  English  blood  improves  the  natives. 

Mr.  Stewart's  own  words  are  given  as  follows : 

"  I  believe  that  the  American  hounds  have  the  best — or  the  most  suita- 
ble—  qualities  for  hunting  the  fox  in  Maryland,  but  thinking  that  by  a  judi- 
cious cross  vnlh  English  blood  a  hound  could  be  bred  which  would  have 
just  as  good  tongue  and  hunting  qualities,  we  have  used  a  Belvoir-bred 
hound  of  Mr.  Charles  E.  Mather's  named  'Glancer,*  and  also  a  son  of 
Belvoir  'Dexter,'  namely  Belvoir  'Vampire,'  and  have  bred  this  cross  back 
to  strong  native  hounds. 

"  We  have  now,  we  think,  a  useful  pack,  with  good  voices  and  noses  and 
much  endurance,  which  run  a  fox  pretty  well  in  almost  all  conditions  of 
weather  and  are  better-boned,  heavier  hounds  and  more  evenly-coloured  than 
the  old-fashioned  native  hounds.  They  also  stand  kennel  discipline  better. 
Whether  they  are  the  best  hounds  that  can  be  bred  for  our  country  or  not, 
I  shall  not  be  sure  for  some  years." 

With  the  Green  Spring  Valley  Hunt,  cubbing  begins  about  August  1  st, 
and  the  hounds  go  out  three  days  a  week  at  4:30  a.m.  until  October  1st, 
when  the  regular  season  opens.  From  then  on,  the  Tuesday  meets  are  at 
daybreak,  and  the  Thursday  and  Saturday  meets  at  2:30  p.  m.     In  addition 

51 


THE    GREEN    SPRING    VALLEY 

to  this,  hounds  are  out  all  day  on  holidays  and  for  a  fortnight  in  Novem- 
ber they  meet  six  days  a  week  and  hunt  all  day,  as  during  this  time  most  of 
the  members  of  the  Hunt  take  a  vacation  and  put  in  two  weeks  of  solid 
hunting. 

Foxes  are  fairly  plentiful,  and  the  two  or  three  blank  days  during  a  season 
come  so  far  apart  that  the  continuous  good  sport  is  hardly  interrupted.  On 
the  other  hand,  there  are  many  earths  in  the  country,  and  as  stopping  is  im- 
practicable, many  of  the  foxes  found  get  to  ground,  and  only  a  small  per- 
centage are  killed  in  the  open.  However,  to  anyone  really  fond  of  fox- 
hunting, and  who  cares  enough  about  the  sport  to  enjoy  hearing  and  seeing 
hounds  at  work,  the  days  are  full  of  genuine  pleasure. 

The  greater  portion  of  the  country  contains  many  large  woodlands,  and 
hounds  would  often  be  lost  were  they  not  very  free  of  tongue.  Often,  however, 
in  the  best  part  of  the  country,  they  force  a  fox  mto  the  open,  where  the 
galloping  is  good  and  the  jumping  clean,  and  give  the  Field  the  finest  kind 
of  a  run. 

As  the  Green  Spring  Valley  pack  is  one  of  the  best  known  in  the  coun- 
try, the  authors  append  accounts  of  several  runs  (kindly  furnished  them  by 
the  Master),  from  which,  perhaps,  a  better  idea  of  the  country  and  the  char- 
acter of  the  hunting  can  be  obtained  than  from  any  description. 

"November  18th,  1895.  Met  at  Brick  School  House  at  9  a.m.  Found  a 
large  fox  about  1 0  o'clock  just  west  of  the  railway.  Viewed  away  by  the 
Field,  he  ran  to  the  right  of  Glyndon,  and  to  the  Worthington  Valley,  where 
the  pack  split,  part  of  it  crossing  the  valley  and  the  rest  of  it  turning  back 
toward  the  point  where  the  fox  was  found. 

"As  'Logan,' one  of  our  best  hounds,  was  in  the  latter  division,  we  followed 
them.  Fox  ran  straight  southeast  for  about  four  miles,  where,  being  headed 
from  his  point  by  some  gunners,  he  turned  east  and  was  pulled  down  in  a 
bit  of  woodland,  after  about  an  hour  and  ten  minutes  of  running.  Those  of 
the  Field  who  had  followed  the  other  part  of  the  pack  got  forty-five  minutes 
of  galloping,  over  a  beautiful  country,  eventually  putting  their  fox  to  ground. 
Thirty-four  in  the  Field. 

"  October  3rd,  1 896.    Met  at  the  kennels  at  2:30  p.m.,  using  ten  couples 

52 


THE    GREEN    SPRING    VALLEY 

of  hounds.  Drew  Cockey's  Wood,  where  we  found  immediately,  the  fox 
going  due  north  across  the  Green  Spring  Valley  and  over  the  Dover  Road 
to  Worthington  Valley,  a  six  mile  point.  At  the  start,  hounds  got  away 
from  us,  but  we  caught  them  in  about  thirty  minutes,  when  they  were  brought 
to  their  noses,  working  slowly  across  some  dry  plough.  Scent  was  very  bad, 
but  they  persisted,  and  as  the  dew  fell  it  improved,  and  getting  closer  to  their 
fox,  they  went  on  again  at  a  good  pace.  Darkness  shut  in  upon  us  and  we 
had  to  leave  them  running  and  were  never  able  to  tell  what  they  did  with 
their  fox.    Thirty-one  in  the  Field. 

"  Saturday,  November  26th,  1 904.  Met  at  Cockey's  Gate,  Worthington 
Valley,  at  9:30  a.m.  The  day  was  cold  and  dry,  with  a  stiff  wind  blowing  — 
most  discouraging  for  good  sport  —  and  only  about  twenty  turned  up  at  the 
meet.  The  first  fox  was  found  shortly,  but  as  hounds  were  unable  to  force 
him  out  of  cover,  they  were  stopped  and  we  drew  again,  finding  quickly  on 
Snow  Hill.  This  fox  broke  cover  and  ran  straight  for  Piney  Hill,  thirty-eight 
minutes  without  a  turn.  From  here  on,  the  pace  became  furious,  and  the 
Field  could  not  have  kept  with  hounds  except  that  the  going  was  perfect,  all 
in  the  open,  over  grass.  During  the  next  forty  minutes  the  fox  made  three 
big  loops,  finally  going  to  ground ;  two  hours  and  eighteen  minutes  in  all. 
Started  with  sixteen  and  a  half  couples  and  had  fourteen  couples  at  the  earth. 
Only  three  of  the  Field  finished  the  run,  so  severe  was  the  pace,  and  when 
we  started  for  the  kennels,  twenty-four  miles  away,  we  were  a  pretty  tired 
lot  of  men  and  horses." 

It  will  be  seen  that  in  two  of  these  runs,  hounds  met  quite  a  bit  after  mid- 
day and,  as  is  often  the  case,  scent  improved  as  nightfall  drew  near.  WTien 
many  of  the  Field  are  forced  by  business  engagements  to  confine  their  hunt- 
ing to  the  latter  part  of  the  day,  this  seems  a  pretty  successful  plan,  and  one 
worthy  of  emulation  by  other  American  Hunts  whose  members  are  similarly 
situated  and  who  would  like  to  enjoy  the  better  sport.  Surely  three  or  four 
hours  behind  foxhounds  is  vastly  better  than  three-quarters  of  an  hour  with 
the  drag. 

The  Green  Spring  Valley  is  a  subscription  Hunt,  with  a  membership 
of  about  two  hundred  and  forty,  and  now  has  an  attractive  clubhouse,  with 

53 


THE    GREEN    SPRING    VALLEY 

good  kennels  at  Garrison  Station,  Maryland,  some  ten  miles  from  Baltimore. 
Mr.  Stewart,  although  a  very  busy  man,  devotes  a  great  deal  of  care  and 
thought  to  the  development  of  his  pack,  and  it  has  steadily  improved  under 
his  management  until  it  is  now,  as  has  been  said,  one  of  the  best  in  the 
country. 


54 


.:^-'*it3;' 


The  Harkaway  Hunt 

DISTINCTIVE  COLLAR - Black 

MASTER Frank  M.  Lowry.  Esq. 

SECRETARY F.  H.  Richard,  Esq.,  Pittsburgh,  Pa. 

HUNTSMAN -- - JackCaffrey 

WHIPPER-IN Arthur  Cregan 

HOUNDS 1 6  couples,  English  and  American 

KENNELS  AND  POST-OFFICE McDonald,  Pa. 

DAYS  OF  MEETING Wednesday  and  Saturday 

LENGTH  OF  SEASON September  1st  to  January  ist 

WHILE  the  Hunt  Clubs  of  Pennsylvania  are  among  the  oldest 
in  the  United  States ;  in  fact,  it  may  almost  be  called  the 
Mother  State  of  organized  fox-hunting,  yet  it  was  not  until 
1 898  that  the  Pittsburgh  Hunt  Club  was  formed.  In  the  days  of  early 
settlement,  the  English  officers  who  were  stationed  at  Fort  Duquesne  must 
have  hunted  foxes,  but  they  hardly  rode  to  hounds  in  the  same  manner  as 
the  present  residents  of  that  locality.  Fox-hunting  in  those  days  must  have 
been  fraught  with  far  greater  dangers  than  those  ordinarily  experienced  by 
the  cross-country  rider.  However,  as  we  are  not  writing  Colonial  history,  we 
will  come  back  to  the  present. 

The  Pittsburgh  Hunt  Club  was  organized  in  1 898,  and  the  sportsmen 
who  formed  it  elected  Mr.  Frank  M.  Lowry  to  the  office  of  Master.  At 
first,  the  kennels  were  at  Sewickley,  but  in  1900  they  were  moved  to  the 
Pittsburgh  Country  Club,  in  the  suburbs  of  the  city.  Drag-hunting  was  carried 
on  there  until  the  beginning  of  1 903,  with  varying  popularity,  but  as  time  went 
on  and  the  Field  became  educated,  the  need  for  the  better  sport  of  fox-hunt- 
ing was  felt,  and  in  the  autumn  of  1 903  the  Pittsburgh  Hunt  Club  was  vir- 
tually disbanded,  and  the  hounds  and  establishment  moved  to  McDonald, 
Pennsylvania,  where  the  present  kennels  are  located. 

55 


THE    HARKAWAY 

At  the  same  time,  a  new  organization,  which  was  christened  the  Harkaway 
Hunt,  was  organized,  and  the  following  gentlemen  were  elected  officers : 
Walter  Lyons,  President ;  Addison  M.  Irwin,  Secretary ;  Edward  McDonald, 
Treasurer,  and  Frank  M.  Lowry,  M.  F.  H. 

The  officers  have  varied  from  time  to  time,  but  Mr.  Lowry  has  always 
held  the  Mastership,  and  it  is  to  his  unflagging  energy  and  enthusiasm  that 
the  Hunt  owes  its  present  flourishing  condition,  and  its  pack  of  sixteen 
couples.  The  town  of  McDonald  is  only  a  short  distance  from  Pittsburgh, 
on  the  line  of  the  Pennsylvania  Railroad,  and  is  quite  easily  accessible  from 
the  city.  The  country  hunted  over  is  an  open,  rolling  one,  with  small  coverts 
which  are  plenrifully  supplied  with  foxes,  and  although  a  few  drags  are  run 
during  the  season,  fox-hunting  proper  is  the  more  popular  sport  and  the  one 
most  indulged  in. 

Canadian  half-  or  three-quarter-bred  horses  are  used  almost  universally, 
having  been  found  best  suited  to  the  climate  and  country.  Some  few  horses 
have  been  brought  up  from  Virginia,  but  they  do  not  seem  to  thrive. 

The  Hunt  is,  of  course,  in  an  embryonic  condition,  and  its  promoters  hope 
that  in  a  few  more  years  a  better  pack  can  be  established  to  hunt  what 
promises  to  be  a  very  good  country. 


56 


BRIGADIER-GENERAl.   ROGER   D.    WILLIAMS,    M.K.H. 


The  Iroquois  Hunt 

MASTER General  Roger  D.  Williams 

SECRETARY -        - W.  J.  Foley,  Esq..  Lexington.  Ky. 

HUNTSMAN - B.  Stone 

HOUNDS --.. 1 0  couples,  American 

KENNELS ----- - - - - Athens.  Ky. 

POST-OFFICE Lexington.  Ky. 

DAYS  OF  MEETING Fridays 

LENGTH  OF  SEASON - September  1st  to  March  I  si 

KENTUCKY  can,  perhaps,  boast  of  more  establishments  devoted 
to  the  raising  of  blood-horses  than  any  other  State  of  the  Union, 
and  where  there  are  blood-horses  is  generally  to  be  found  a  class 
of  sportsmen  interested  in  hounds  ;  for,  after  all,  one  is  the  complement  of  the 
other. 

Thus  it  happens  that  Brigadier-General  Roger  D.  Williams,  the  Master 
of  the  Iroquois  Hunt,  has  inherited  his  love  of  sport  from  his  father,  grand- 
father and  great-grandfather ;  all  of  whom  were  native  Kentuckians  and 
maintained  a  pack  of  foxhounds.  General  Williams  has  always  been  a  hunt- 
ing man,  and  while  he  has,  at  various  times,  imported  a  few  English  hounds, 
has  always  been  a  strong  believer  in,  and  supporter  of,  the  native  product, 
and  the  small  pack  of  ten  couples  which  is  followed  by  the  members  of  the 
Iroquois  Hunt  are  all  of  his  own  breeding. 

The  Iroquois  Hunt  proper  was  founded  in  1880,  and  for  twenty-eight 
years  General  Williams  has  acted  as  M.  F.  H. 

The  country  hunted  by  him,  lying  about  ten  miles  from  Lexington,  is  for 
the  most  part  rolling  blue-grass  pasture  land,  enclosed  with  rail  fences  and 
stone  walls.  The  existence  of  many  extensive  breeding  establishments  pre- 
vents hunting  nearer  to  Lexington,  but  has  the  advantage  of  keeping  the  fences 
always  in  good  condition  and  free  from  wire. 

57 


THE    IROQUOIS 

Foxes  are  very  plentiful  and  the  Field  is  almost  certain  of  a  good  gallop 
over  the  best  of  footing  whenever  hounds  go  out,  as  the  foxes  hunted  are 
of  the  red  variety  and  as  strong  and  game  as  can  be  desired. 

Hounds  run  very  fast  on  the  blue-grass  and  it  needs  a  clean-bred  horse, 
or  one  with  a  small  infusion  of  cold  blood,  to  keep  with  them,  while  the 
Kentuckians  are  very  fond  of  the  sport  and  turn  out  in  goodly  numbers, 
fifty  per  cent  of  them  being  ladies,  most  of  whom  ride  hard  and  straight. 

The  type  of  hound  used  by  General  Williams  differs  as  greatly  from  the 
type  of  hound  used  at  Grafton  as  a  thoroughbred  horse  differs  from  a  polo 
pony,  and  yet  both  Masters  claim  to  have  the  true  type  of  American  hound. 
The  authors  merely  state  this  fact  in  order  that  their  readers  may  decide 
for  themselves  which  is  the  "  American  hound." 


58 


The  Keswick  Hunt 


DISTINCTIVE  COLLAR - _ Green 

EVENING  DRESS Scarlet  coat,  green  collar  and  facings 

MASTER - Julian  Morris,  Esq. 

SECRETARY FrancU  Lee  Thimnan.  M.  D.,  Keswick, 

Albemarle  County,  Va. 

HUNTSMAN - - - The  Master 

KENNEL  HUNTSMAN "Tipper  "  Morris 

HON.  WHIPPERS-IN \  '«».  Francis  Lee  Thurman.M.  D. 

f  2nd,  E.  H.  Joslm,  Esq. 

HOUNDS - 12  couples  \  4  couples,  English 

(  8  couples,  American 

KENNELS  AND  POST-OFFICE Keswick,  Albemarle  County.  Va. 

DAYS  OF  MEETING   - Tuesday  and  Saturday 

LENGTH  OF  SEASON - November  1st  to  April  1 5fh 


THE  Keswick  Hunt  Club  is  perhaps  the  strongest  organization  of 
its  kind  near  Charlottesville,  which,  as  has  been  said,  is  one  of  the 
fox-hunting  centres  of  Virginia. 
The  present  Secretary,  Dr.  Francis  Lee  Thurman,  who  has  been  identi- 
fied with  the  Club  since  its  early  beginnings  and  has  always  been  its  chron- 
icler, has  been  kind  enough  to  allow  the  authors  to  make  use  of  an  article 
on  the  history  of  the  Hunt,  written  for  the  Richmond  Times-Dispatch  in 
February,  1 907,  from  which  much  of  the  information  as  to  dates  and  events 
has  been  drawn. 

On  December  1 0th,  1 896,  a  number  of  gentlemen  devoted  to  sport  met 
at  the  historic  home  of  F.  M.  Randolph,  Esq.,  "  Cloverfields,"  and  organ- 
ized themselves  into  a  club  whose  objects  were  "social  intercourse,  and  fox- 
and  drag-hunting." 

These  gentlemen,  who  constitute  the  charter  members  of  the  Club,  were: 

59 


THE     KESWICK 

Cary  Ruffin  Randolph,  John  Francis  Chisholm,  James  Morris  Page,  Stuart 
Hanckle,  Dr.  Francis  Lee  Thurman,  George  W.  Macon,  Francis  Merri- 
weather  Randolph,  Murray  Boocock,  Ford  Murphy,  W.  L.  Cochran,  Charles 
E.  Dickinson,  W.  L.  Smith,  Hugh  C.  Dodd,  Martin  Crimmins,  William 
Shackelford,  W.  Douglas  Macon,  Prof.  Edward  Echols,  H.  W.  Greenough 
and  Joseph  W.  Everett ;  and  they  elected  the  following  officers  of  the  Kes- 
wick Hunt  Club  :  President,  John  Armstrong  Chanler ;  First  Vice-President, 
Hon.  George  W.  Morris ;  Second  Vice-President,  Col.  H.  W.  Fuller; 
Treasurer,  Murray  Boocock;  Secretary,  Joseph  W.  Everett;  Master  of 
Hounds,  Cary  Ruffin  Randolph;  Whipper-in,  Hugh  C.  Dodd. 

The  old  Manor  house  at  "  Cloverfields "  was  rented  temporarily  for  a 
clubhouse  and  a  Committee  consisting  of  Messrs.  Boocock,  Thurman,  Macon, 
Randolph  and  Echols  was  appointed  to  find  a  suitable  site  for  a  permanent 
clubhouse  and  grounds. 

When  the  next  annual  meeting  came,  little  had  been  done.  A  spirit  of 
vacillation  rather  than  of  progress  was  evident,  and  during  the  season  of 
1 897,  had  it  not  been  for  the  Master,  the  movement  might  have  come  to 
nothing;  but  he  kept  many  of  the  hounds  on  his  own  estate,  persuaded 
members  to  do  the  same,  and  wheedled  hound  puppies  out  of  others,  accept- 
ing them  in  place  of  the  annual  dues.  Land  was  purchased,  a  clubhouse 
built,  and  then  the  social  feature  became  a  prominent  factor ;  ladies  being 
admitted  to  all  Club  privileges  except  the  franchise. 

Up  to  this  time  not  much  formality  had  been  kept  up  in  the  Hunt,  but 
Col.  Randolph  had  difficulties  to  surmount  that  were  little  dreamed  of  by 
the  outsider,  and  to  him  the  Keswack  owes  a  debt  of  gratitude  not  likely  to 
be  soon  forgotten.  This  was  a  period  of  financial  stnngency,  and  many  and 
varied  were  the  devices  employed  to  raise  money  with  which  to  pay  off  the 
mortgage  on  the  clubhouse,  etc.  One  of  the  most  successful  was  a  gymkhana 
meeting,  organized  by  a  member,  Mr.  Robert  McMurdo,  and  as  a  result  of  it 
the  Treasurer  began  to  look  cheerful  once  more. 

At  the  next  annual  meeting  of  the  Club,  on  October  25  th,  1898, 
Col.  Randolph  resigned  the  Mastership  and  Mr.  H.  C.  Dodd,  who  had 
been  acting  as  Honorary  Whipper-in,  was  elected  in  his  stead;  serving  for 

60 


THE     KESWICK 

one  season  to  the  entire  satisfaction  of  the  Field.  He  then  resigned,  and  Col. 
Randolph  again  consented  to  carry  the  horn,  his  second  Mastership  continu- 
ing until  the  season  of  1 90 1 ,  when  the  present  Master,  Mr.  Julian  Morris, 
was  elected.  This  gentleman  promptly  took  steps  to  put  the  hunting  on  a 
firmer  and  more  modern  basis.  Heretofore,  no  uniform  had  been  adopted  by 
the  Hunt,  but  now  Master,  Hunt  Staff,  and  many  of  the  Field  turned  out  in 
regulation  scarlet,  adopting  a  green  collar  as  their  distinguishing  badge,  and 
more  form  and  order  were  maintained  in  the  field  than  before. 

Mr.  Morris  has  continued  to  act  as  Master  up  to  the  present  time,  and 
during  his  regime  the  quality  of  the  sport  has  steadily  improved.  The  coun- 
try itself  is  quite  ideal  and  the  climate  is  such  that  very  few  days  are  missed 
during  the  regular  season,  which  lasts  from  November  1  st,  to  April  I  5th. 

Most  of  the  hunting  area  is  in  large  estates  belonging  to  members  of,  or 
subscribers  to,  the  Hunt,  and  consequently  such  obstacles  to  sport  as  wire  and 
posted  land  are  rarely  to  be  found.  The  fences  here  are  generally  timber,  big 
and  stiff,  and  require  a  bold  jumping  horse  to  negotiate  them  successfully. 

The  Master  maintains  a  large  breeding  establishment,  and  has  probably 
bred  and  developed  as  many  high-class  hunters  as  anyone  in  America  today. 
The  Keswack  Hunt  Team  has  won  at  the  National  Horse  Show  at  New 
York  for  the  last  two  years,  while  the  names  of  "Keswick"  and  "David 
Gray"  are  known  to  all  the  latter-day  frequenters  of  horse  shows.  Inciden- 
tally, it  might  be  said  that  these  show  winners  are  hunted  regularly  and  are 
excellent  performers  in  the  field.  The  present  pack,  which  is  used  for  drag- 
hunting  on  Saturdays  and  for  fox-hunting  on  Thursdays,  is  hardly  up  to  the 
high  standard  set  by  the  Master  of  the  Keswick  in  horseflesh,  and  it  is  to 
be  hoped  that,  perhaps  in  the  near  future,  as  much  attention  will  be  paid  to 
this  very  important  "  arm  of  the  service  *  as  is  given  to  the  means  of  convey- 
ance across  country. 


61 


The  Lima  Hunt 

MASTER - - Dr.  Charles  A.  Dohan 

SECRETARY - - Joseph  M.  Dohan.  Esq..  Philadelphia,  Pa. 

HON.  HUNTSMAN - - John  Yamell,  Esq. 

HON.  WHIPPERS-IN - -.-- \  \'\  Leander  W^RJddle    Esq. 

(  Znd,  Joseph  M.  Uohan,  Esq. 

HOUNDS - - -- 18  1-2  couples,  American 

KENNELS  AND  POST-OFFICE - Lima,  Delaware  County,  Pa. 

DAYS  OF  MEETING - Tuesday,  Thursday  and  Saturday, 

with  an  occasional  bye 

LENGTH  OF  SEASON November  1st  to  April  1st 


OF  all  the  people  of  the  United  States,  perhaps  the  Pennsylvanians 
and  Virginians  are  the  greatest  lovers  of  fox-hunting,  and,  as  will 
be  seen  in  the  chapter  on  the  Rose  Tree  Hunt,  the  inhabitants 
of  Delaware  and  Chester  counties,  almost  to  a  man,  kept  a  few  foxhounds. 
The  trencher-fed  packs  that  resulted  eventually  crystallized  into  the  various 
Hunts  which  now  exist,  and  the  Lima  is  one  of  these.  In  1 885,  the  farmers 
and  landowTiers  in  what  is  now  the  Lima  country  made  an  association  of 
their  hounds  under  the  name  of  the  Lima  Fox  Hunting  Club,  and,  like 
many  other  organizations  of  its  kind  located  in  the  vicinity  of  Philadelphia, 
it  traces  its  origin  to  the  Gloucester  Fox  Hunting  Club. 

Unfortunately,  no  records  are  available  to  tell  us  of  the  founders  and  of  the 
early  Masters,  but  in  1 892,  the  present  Master,  Dr.  Charlas  A.  Dohan,  was 
elected  and  has  continued  in  office  ever  since.  Under  his  rule,  the  pack  has 
been  carefully  looked  after  and  steadily  improved,  until  at  present  there  are 
eighteen  and  a  half  couples  of  American  hounds  in  the  kennels,  which  have 
the  reputation  of  being  one  of  the  best  working  packs  in  the  country. 
There  are  seventy-five  members  of  the  Lima  Hunt,  whose  pack,  by-the- 

62 


THE    LIMA 

bye,  is  entirely  supported  by  subscription,  and  it  is  no  uncommon  occurrence 
to  have  half-a-dozen  ladies  in  the  Field. 

Dr.  Dohan's  country  is  cramped  and  hilly,  though  not  rough,  except  in 
small  localities,  and  the  average  enclosure  contains  about  eight  or  ten  acres 
only,  which  naturally  furnishes  plenty  of  jumping.  The  fences  are  mainly 
timber,  with  a  few  stone  walls  and  a  good  many  brooks  which  require  some 
doing.  As  yet,  ware-fencing  has  not  become  a  serious  menace,  and  the  hunting 
farmers  are  so  numerous  that  there  seems  to  be  a  fair  chance  of  keeping  it 
out  in  any  quantity.  Clean-bred  and  cold-bred  horses  are  used  indiscrim- 
inately, according  to  the  taste  of  the  rider,  but  the  runs  are  long  and  severe, 
owing  to  the  pace  of  hounds,  and  it  is  the  opinion  of  the  Master  that  a 
blood-horse  is  best  suited  to  the  country. 

The  attitude  of  the  landowners,  as  in  most  parts  of  Pennsylvania,  is  entirely 
favorable ;  many  of  them  turning  out  regularly  and  some  of  them  contrib- 
uting hounds,  giving  the  Lima  still  somewhat  the  character  of  a  trencher-fed 
pack. 


63 


The  London  Hunt 


DISTINCTIVE  COLLAR - Gray  blue 

EVENING  DRESS —  Scarlet  coat,  gray  blue  collar  and  facings 

MASTER - The  Honorable  Adam  Beck 

SECRETARY H.  C.  Becher,  Esq.,  London,  Ontario 

HUNTSMAN - - The  Master 

KENNEL  HUNTSMAN Robert  Imrie 

WHIPPERS-IN - ~ \  1"',^:5*^^" 

(  Znd,   1 .  bmith 

HOUNDS - - 1 8  couples,  English 

KENNELS Masonville.  Ontario 

POST-OFFICE London,  Ontario 

DAYS   OF  MEETING - Tuesday,  Thursday  and  Saturday 

LENGTH  OF  SEASON - September  1st  to  December  1st 

THE  year  1 885  saw  the  foundation  of  the  London  Hunt,  and  as 
is  the  case  with  all  the  Hunts  in  Canada,  English  hounds  were 
procured  from  the  mother  country.  The  Hunt  began  to  enjoy 
its  first  years  of  sport  under  the  Mastership  of  George  C.  Gibbons,  Esq., 
who  continued  in  office  for  fifteen  years,  finally  resigning,  in  1900,  in  favor 
of  a  younger  man,  the  present  M.  F.  H.  Mr.  Adam  Beck  has  today  some 
of  the  best  hunters  in  America,  and  in  1 907  the  London  Hunt  Team  won  at 
the  International  Horse  Show  at  Olympia,  London,  England,  to  say  nothing 
of  having  won  twice  previously  at  the  National  Horse  Show  in  New  York 
and  at  every  Canadian  Horse  Show  at  which  they  were  exhibited. 

In  1 902,  Mr.  Beck  imported  ten  couples  of  hounds  from  England,  most 
of  them  coming  from  Mr.  Salkeld's.  At  the  same  time.  Will  Edwards, 
now  first  Whipper-in  to  the  Middlesex,  came  over  to  take  charge  of  the 
hounds,  and  during  the  two  seasons  that  he  remained  at  London  the  pack 
was  brought  to  the  fiigh  standard  of  efficiency  at  which  it  has  since  been  kept. 

64 


THE    LONDON 

Until  the  advent  of  Edwards,  drag-hunting  had  been  the  only  form  of 
sport  indulged  in,  but  during  his  time  there,  the  hounds  went  out  after  foxes 
on  off  days,  though  this  was  later  given  up,  as  the  members  found  that  they 
could  not  devote  sufficient  time  to  it  to  make  it  worth  while.  Mr.  Beck 
himself  is  a  finished  horseman,  and  both  he  and  Mrs.  Beck,  who  is  also  a 
keen  lover  of  the  sport,  are  almost  always  to  be  seen  behind  the  hounds 
when  they  hunt  the  drag  on  three  days  a  week  during  their  short  season, 
which  lasts  only  from  September  1  st  to  December  I  st. 

The  country  is  ideal  for  drag-hunting,  the  footing  being  excellent  and  the 
fences  clean  and  free  from  wire,  although  big.  Mr.  Beck  has  been  exten- 
sively engaged  in  politics,  having  been  at  one  time  Mayor  of  the  city  of  Lon- 
don, Ontario,  and  has  found  only  too  little  time  to  devote  to  his  favorite 
recreation.  Were  it  not  for  this  fact,  fox-hunting  would  undoubtedly  have 
been  successfully  established,  as  foxes  are  plentiful  in  the  country,  and  the 
coverts  are  moderate  in  size.  In  addition  to  this,  the  townships  are  so  laid 
out  that  it  is  possible  to  follow  hounds  even  in  the  midst  of  winter,  when  the 
snow  is  heavy,  by  riding  along  the  roads  which  are  laid  out  by  the  Domin- 
ion Government  in  exact  mile  squares,  thus  enabling  the  huntsman  and  Field 
to  keep  with  hounds  whichever  way  they  turn. 

The  Master  has  recently  imported  one  or  two  stallion  hounds  from  Eng- 
land, and  the  kennel  huntsman,  Robert  Imrie,  has  been  a  successful  hound 
breeder.     At  present  he  has  eighteen  couples  in  the  kennels. 

The  Field  is  a  small  but  enthusiastic  one  and  several  ladies,  in  addition  to 
the  Master's  wife,  are  usually  out,  notably  the  Misses  Gibbons,  daughters  of 
the  first  Master. 

Two  lines  are  generally  laid  for  the  draghounds,  each  from  two  to  five 
miles  in  length,  over  beautiful,  open,  rolling  country,  where  the  fences  average 
not  under  four  feet,  six  inches.  Most  of  the  Field  ride  half-breds,  although 
the  Hunt  Staff  is  always  superbly  mounted  from  Mr.  Beck's  string  of  clean- 
bred  ones. 

The  hunting  territory  is  acknowledged  to  be  as  strongly  enclosed  as  any 
in  America, —  the  Meadow  Brook  "north  country"  not  excepted, —  and 
while  a  fast,  sustained  gallop  over  it  on  a  well-bred  and  well-schooled  hunter, 

65 


THE    LONDON 

in  high  condition,  affords  as  rare  enjoyment  as  a  riding  man  could  desire,  yet 
it  is  equally  certain  that  fox-hunting  might  be  brought  to  a  very  high  state  of 
perfection  in  this  favored  locality. 

The  possibilities  at  London  are  almost  unlimited,  being  far  greater  than 
those  of  many  a  provincial  Hunt  in  England,  and  it  is  to  be  hoped  that  the 
next  ten  years  vv^ll  see  the  Master  hunting  foxes  with  as  fine  a  lot  of  hounds 
as  he  now  has  horses  in  his  stables. 


66 


W.  EDWARDS,   HUNTSMAN   1903-1904 


The  Loudoun  County  Hunt 


DISTINCTIVE  COLLAR - Scarlet  with  gieen  piping 

MASTER  - Westmoreland  Davis,  Esq. 

SECRETARY W.  A.  Metzger,  Esq..  Leesburg.  Va. 

HUNTSMAN Robert  Dodd 

WHIPPER-IN ■ - G.  Glasscock 

HOUNDS 12  couples,  American 

KENNELS " Morven  Park."  Leesburg,  Va. 

POST-OFFICE - - Leesburg,  Va. 

DAYS  OF  MEETING - Tuesday  and  Saturday 

LENGTH  OF  SEASON  - October  1st  to  February  15th 


LEESBURG,  VIRGINIA,  the  county-seat  of  Loudoun  County, 
is  so  placed  by  the  conditions  of  nature  that  it  should  have  every 
chance  to  become  one  of  the  great  hunting  centres  of  America. 
Situated  in  the  heart  of  a  beautiful  hunting  country,  convenient  to  reach  by 
rail  from  Washington,  from  which  it  lies  about  thirty-five  miles  northwest  on 
the  banks  of  the  Potomac  River,  it  offers  many  attractions  to  the  hunting 
man.  Its  chief  drawback  lies  in  the  vast  quantity  of  wire  fencing  which  is 
gradually,  but  quite  surely,  taking  the  place  of  the  timber. 

Attempts  to  overcome  this  evil  by  putting  in  panels  of  post-and-rails  are 
being  made,  but  until  some  more  systematic  work  is  done  along  these  lines, 
the  remedy  will  amount  to  little.  Still  another  drawback  to  the  country  is 
the  scarcity  of  foxes  in  certciin  portions  of  it,  although  they  are  very  plentiful 
along  the  creeks. 

Various  men,  some  of  them  members  of  the  Loudoun  County  Hunt,  have 
kept  their  own  hounds  from  time  immemorial,  and  among  these  Mr.  William 
Heflin  stands  pre-eminent.  Mr.  Heflin  has  hunted  his  own  hounds  in  his 
own  way,  when  and  where  he  chose,  for  twenty-five  years,  and  continues  to 

67 


THE    LOUDOUN    COUNTY 

do  so  still.  Sometimes  he  joins  with  the  Loudoun  County — which  is  in  real- 
ity little  more  than  a  trencher-fed  pack — and  sometimes  he  takes  them  out  by 
himself  or  with  a  few  friends  and,  sitting  on  his  horse  on  top  of  a  hill  from 
which  he  can  command  a  view  of  the  surrounding  country,  enjoys  his  sport 
after  the  old-fashioned  southern  style.  The  Loudoun  County  country  is 
really  Mr.  Heflin's,  and  he  hunted  it  long  before  the  Club  was  formed ;  but 
in  Virginia,  the  old  settlers  respect  each  other's  claims  to  hunting  country  very 
little,  or  to  put  it  in  another  form,  everyone  is  welcome  in  any  man's  country. 
This  example  might  well  be  followed  by  some  of  the  northern  Hunts, 
which  amuse  themselves  by  quarrelling  over  the  division  of  countries  over 
which  they  have  absolutely  no  rights.  The  Loudoun,  however,  cannot  be 
called  one  of  these.  It  is  a  Virginia  Hunt,  organized  by  Virginians,  and 
whenever  northern  hounds  have  hunted  over  its  territory  they  have  done  so 
at  its  invitation. 

In  1 894,  several  residents  of  the  country,  among  whom  were  Mr.  Arthur 
Mason  Chichester,  Jr.,  the  Club's  first  President,  Mr.  W.  A.  Metzger,  who 
has  been  its  Secretary  ever  since  its  inception,  Messrs.  E.  V.  White,  Henry 
Fairfax  of  "  Oak  Hill,"  William  C.  Eustis  of  "  Oatlands  House,"  David  B. 
Tennant,  William  Heflin,  Henry  Harrison  of  "  Utopia,"  and  a  number  of 
others,  organized  under  the  name  of  the  Loudoun  County  Hunt  Club.  Mr. 
Tennant  was  elected  M.  F.  H.,  and  for  a  year  hunted  a  pack  of  nondescript 
American  hounds. 

In  1905,  Mr.  Tennant  resigned  the  Mastership,  greatly  to  the  regret  of 
everyone,  and  Mr.  David  B.  Stevenson  was  elected  in  his  place.  Mr. 
Stevenson's  term  of  office  was  very  short,  as  he  found  himself  forced  to  move 
to  the  north  for  business  reasons ;  but  during  his  Mastership  a  drag  pack 
was  also  maintained  and  used  up  to  November  1  st,  before  the  crops  were  in. 
During  the  summer  of  1 906,  Mr.  William  C.  Eustis,  who  was  acting  M.  F.  H., 
bought  the  entire  pack  of  the  Piedmont  hounds  from  Mr.  Dulany  and 
presented  them  to  the  Club,  and  a  few  months  later  Mr.  Westmoreland 
Davis,  who  had  recently  purchased  the  large  and  beautiful  estate  of  "  Morven 
Park,"  near  the  town,  was  elected  M.  F.  H.  He  thereupon  set  to  work  to 
make  Leesburg  the  great  hunting  centre  he  had  always  hoped  it  might  be- 

68 


WESTMORELAND  DAVIS,   ESQ.,   M.F.H. 
From  a  Painting  by  R.  Percy  Wilds 


THE    LOUDOUN    COUNTY 

come.  Finding  that  the  hounds  which  belonged  to  the  Hunt  when  he  took 
office  were  very  unmanageable,  —  killing  twenty-nine  sheep  on  one  of  the 
first  days  in  the  field, — he  destroyed  them  all,  and  bought  a  small  draft  from 
Mr.  Bywaters  of  Culpepper,  Virginia.  Mr.  Bywaters  breeds  the  American 
foxhound,  "  in  its  pure  state,"  and  claims  to  have  as  good  as  there  are  in 
America. 

Mr.  Heflin  also  very  kindly  loaned  the  Club  five  or  six  couples  of  his 
hounds,  and  these  were  hunted  two  days  a  week  throughout  the  season  of 
1 906  by  Robert  Dodd,  with  George  Glasscock  whipping-in  to  him.  During 
the  summer,  the  Board  of  Governors  had  invited  Mr.  A.  Henry  Higginson 
of  Massachusetts  to  bring  the  Middlesex  Foxhounds  to  Virginia  for  the  sea- 
son, and  this  pack  was  hunted  on  alternate  days  with  the  home  pack  from 
November  1  st  to  January  1  5  th,  the  Loudoun  taking  the  field  on  Tuesday  and 
Saturday  and  the  Middlesex  on  Monday,  Wednesday  and  Friday.  The 
season  was  a  good  one  and  the  excellent  sport  which  both  packs  showed 
attracted  many  visitors  from  Washington  and  the  north. 

The  season  of  1 907  was  exceptionally  open,  and  the  sport  was  better 
than  ever,  the  Middlesex  taking  four  days  a  week  and  the  Loudoun  retain- 
ing the  Tuesday  and  Saturday  meets.  Mr.  Davis,  however,  found  himself 
very  much  occupied  with  business  matters  and  could  not  give  as  much  atten- 
tion to  the  pack  as  formerly,  which  led  him  to  tender  his  resignation,  to  take 
effect  at  the  end  of  the  season. 

The  authors  know  the  Loudoun  country  very  well,  having  hunted  with 
the  Middlesex  Foxhounds  there  throughout  the  seasons  of  1906  and  1907, 
and  feel  competent  to  give  a  more  accurate  descnption  of  it  than  of  almost 
any  in  America  except  their  own.  As  they  consider  that,  judging  from  last 
season's  Fields,  Loudoun  County  will  eventually  become  the  Mecca  of  all 
hunting  men  in  America,  they  hope  that  their  readers  v^all  excuse  them  for 
going  somewhat  into  details. 

To  the  north  of  the  town,  lies  what  is  knowTi  as  the  "Lucketts"  country, 
a  strip  of  territory  some  twelve  miles  in  length  and  five  or  six  in  width,  lying 
between  the  Potomac  River  and  the  Hog  Back  range  of  mountains.  The 
country  here  is  very  open  and  flat ;  its  best  coverts  being  along  the  banks  of 

69 


THE    LOUDOUN    COUNTY 

the  river  at  Ball's  Bluff  and  at  Red  Bank.  Both  these  coverts  are  pretty 
sure  "finds,"  and  foxes  found  in  them  are  apt  to  run  toward  the  Hog  Back 
Mountains  and,  if  hard  pressed,  into  the  valley  beyond  or  up  the  side  of  the 
ridge,  eventually  trying  to  return  to  their  starting  point.  The  enclosures  are 
large  and  the  going  sound,  most  of  it  being  used  for  pasture  and  conse- 
quently very  strongly  fenced.  There  is  much  wire,  and  where  there  is  not, 
few  of  the  fences  are  under  four  feet  eight  inches  in  height,  while  some  of 
them  are  five  feet  or  over. 

The  eastern  portion  of  the  country,  which  lies  beyond  Goose  Creek,  is 
rough,  heavily  wooded,  full  of  wire  and  not  very  good  hunting,  but  if  one 
keeps  on  the  Leesburg  side  of  the  creek  and  swings  south  along  its  banks, 
one  comes  to  a  series  of  coverts  which  are  probably  better  supplied  with 
foxes  than  any  others. 

The  area  south  of  the  town,  bounded  by  Goose  Creek,  which  makes 
a  westerly  turn  ten  miles  above,  is  more  wooded  than  that  lying  to  the  north 
and  east.  Strong,  though  rideable  woodlands  afford  ample  cover  for  foxes ; 
and  Fendall's  Wood,  Fleming's,  Maple  Swamp  and  Carter's  Wood  are 
almost  always  productive  of  a  good  fox  and  a  good  run,  the  country  here 
being  also  level  and  very  strongly  fenced. 

If  one  crosses  Goose  Creek  at  the  Oatlands  bridge,  about  ten  miles  south 
of  the  town,  and  goes  down  the  Aldie  pike,  one  is  m  the  heart  of  the  very 
cream  of  the  country.  To  the  east  lies  Areola,  a  bit  rough  but  fairly  good 
galloping,  to  the  south  Hickory  Grove  and  Aldie,  with  the  Bull  Run  Moun- 
tain coverts ;  while  turning  to  the  west  one  comes  to  the  Skinner  coverts, 
the  Marble  Quarry,  and  Steptoe  Hill,  which  offer  the  best  sport  of  all. 
Goose  Creek  divides  the  Marble  Quarry  and  Steptoe  Hill,  while  Beaver 
Dam  Creek,  one  of  its  tributaries,  runs  just  north  of  it.  Steptoe  Hill  is  an 
absolutely  sure  "find,"  and  though  the  territory  for  several  miles  around  is 
hilly,  foxes  either  make  for  the  open  country  around  "  Oak  Hill,"  Mr.  Henry 
Fairfax's  estate,  or  turn  west  toward  Mountsville,  giving  the  finest  kind  of 
galloping  over  good,  sound  upland  pastures,  just  rolling  enough  to  make  it  in- 
teresting. 

Due  north  of  Leesburg,  between  the  Blue  Ridge  and  the  Hog  Back 

70 


THE    LOUDOUN    COUNTY 

ranges,  lies  a  valley  twenty  miles  long  and  ten  miles  wide.  The  little  towns 
of  Waterford,  Wheatland,  Hamilton  and  Hillsboro  afford  popular  meets  from 
which  to  hunt  this  territory.  Catoctin  Creek,  at  one  place,  makes  a  very 
circuitous  bend  known  as  "The  Horse-shoe,"  which  affords  good  cover 
along  its  banks,  in  which  many  foxes  breed.  Let  hounds  force  a  fox  out  of  it 
into  the  open,  and  he  must  run  fast  and  far  over  the  most  beautiful  riding 
country  before  he  can  find  sanctuary.  Little  or  no  hunting  was  done  in  this 
section  of  the  country  until  1 908,  and  the  landowners  are  keen  to  have  hounds 
there  as  often  as  they  will  come,  though  for  that  matter  most  of  the  landowners 
in  Virginia  are  reasonable  enough  if  they  are  treated  with  consideration. 

Such  is  the  "  Leicestershire  of  America,"  a  distinction  which  is  shared  by 
the  Piedmont  and  Orange  County  countries  which  adjoin  it 


71 


The  Meadow  Brook  Hunt 


DISTINCTIVE  COLLAR - -- Light  blue 

EVENING  DRESS - -  Scarlet  coat,  light  blue  facings 

MASTER - - -  Samuel  Willets,  Esq. 

SECRETARY - - -August  Belmont,  Jr.,  Esq.,  New  York,  N.  Y. 

HUNTSMAN — - - - Michael  Hanlon 

WHIPPERS-IN         -       -  -  -  ^   '  *''  ^'"'*'"  Lambert 

(  2nd,  James  Cosgrove 

KENNELMAN - - Patrick  Gibson 

HOUNDS - - - - - 30  couples,  EnglUh 

KENNELS  AND  POST-OFFICE - - Westbury,  Long  Island,  N.  Y. 

DAYS  OF  MEETING - - - Four  days  a  week 

LENGTH  OF  SEASON -.- - \  t^'T^^' }^'^[°  ■'."""T  ''' 

I  March  15lh  to  April  15  th 


FOX-HUNTING  on  Long  Island,  of  which  the  Meadow  Brook 
Hunt  is  to-day  the  chief  exponent,  dates  from  1  770,  when  one 
John  Evers  maintained  and  hunted  a  pack  at  Hempstead.  Horses, 
hounds  and  Hunt  servants  came  from  England,  and  among  the  subscribers 
to  the  pack  was  George  Washington,  Esq. 

From  a  notice  posted  November  1 9th,  1  78 1 ,  by  the  Brooklyn  Hunt,  that 
"hounds  would  throw  off  at  Denyse's  Ferry,  on  the  estate  of  Denyse 
Denyse,  Esq.,  at  The  Narrows  (now  Fort  Hamilton),  at  9  o'clock,  Thursday 
morning  and  that  a  guinea  would  be  given  for  a  good,  strong  bag-fox  "  and 
signed — "Charles  Loosely,"  it  appears  that  there  was  hunting  in  that  vicinity 
and  that  such  an  organization  as  the  Brooklyn  Hunt  existed.  Denyse 
Denyse,  Esq.,  was  the  great-grandfather  of  H.  L.  Herbert,  Esq.,  who  is  now 
one  of  the  prominent  members  of  the  Meadow  Brook  Hunt  and  has  always 
given  to  it  his  most  earnest  support.     The  Revolutionary  War  brought  an 

72 


THE    MEADOW    BROOK 

end  to  these  pioneer  efforts,  and,  as  was  the  case  with  the  hunting  about 
Philadelphia,  there  was  a  period  of  inactivity  among  fox-hunters. 

As  far  as  can  be  discovered,  there  was  little  or  no  hunting  about  New 
York  City  until  1 874,  when  Colonel  Frederick  S.  Skinner  and  Mr.  Joseph 
Donohue  maintained  a  pack  of  hounds  on  the  edge  of  the  Jersey  meadows, 
at  Hackensack.  Messrs.  Skinner  and  Donohue  were  in  the  habit  of  draw- 
ing their  coverts  on  foot  and  when  hounds  found,  of  retreating  to  a  horse  and 
buggy  which  stood  in  the  fields  nearby  and  follovsong  as  best  they  could  along 
the  roads.  When  hounds  killed,  however,  they  were  generally  there  or  there- 
abouts, and  although  their  methods  could  hardly  be  endorsed  by  any  previ- 
ous customs  of  the  hunting-field,  they  were  hard  to  beat  at  their  game. 

Eventually  the  "goings-on"  at  Hackensack  came  to  the  ears  of  half-a- 
dozen  young  men  of  New  York,  one  or  two  of  whom  had  hunted  in  Eng- 
land and  all  of  whom  were  keen  for  sport  of  any  kind.  One  by  one  they 
stole  across  to  Hackensack  and  the  New  Jersey  pack  began  to  have  a  fol- 
lowing of  straight  riders.  The  joint  Masters,  Messrs.  Skinner  and  Donohue, 
still  kept  to  their  faithful  buggy,  but  welcomed  the  riders  who  flew  timber 
and  stone  and  rode  out  of  their  way  to  get  the  jumping. 

But  the  fences  were  simple,  the  country  was  small  and  the  pace  was  slow, 
and  although  a  large  Field  came  from  New  York  on  Thanksgiving  Day  of 
1 876  to  join  in  the  fun,  it  was  soon  found  that  both  hounds  and  country 
were  unsuitable  to  attain  the  best  results  and  it  was  decided  to  make  a  move. 
To  Messrs.  Skinner  and  Donohue,  however,  should  be  given  the  credit  of 
whetting  the  appetites  of  the  slow-moving  New  Yorkers  and  inciting  them 
to  an  appreciation  of  the  possibihties  of  fox-hunting  on  Long  Island. 

Early  in  1877,  four  gentlemen,  A.  Belmont  Purdy,  William  E.  Peet,  F. 
Gray  Griswold  and  Robert  Center,  met  at  the  latter's  rooms  in  New  York 
and  subscribed  $250  each,  to  go  toward  the  purchasing  of  a  pack.  Mr. 
Griswold,  who  was  going  abroad,  was  entrusted  with  their  selection  and  pur- 
chase, and  on  his  arrival  in  Ireland  he  obtained,  through  Mr.  Thomas  Tur- 
bitt  of  Scribblestown,  a  pack  of  harriers. 

During  Mr.  Griswold's  absence,  the  other  three  gentlemen  cast  about  for 
a  suitable  country,  and  eventually  selected  that  now  hunted  over  by  the 

73 


THE    MEADOW    BROOK 

Meadow  Brook.  The  lease  of  a  farmhouse,  situated  on  the  property  which 
the  Meadow  Brook  Hunt  now  occupies,  was  secured,  and  here,  on  Octo- 
ber 4th,  1877,  was  the  first  meet  of  the  Queen's  County  hounds.  A  cir- 
cular, setting  forth  the  aims  and  objects  of  the  Hunt,  had  been  sent  out,  and 
the  subscriptions  which  came  in  response  to  this  were  very  gratifying;  so 
that  when  Mr.  Frank  Griswold,  who  had  been  elected  Master,  rode  to  the 
meet  with  a  most  useful  looking  pack  of  about  seventeen  couples,  he  was 
greeted  by  a  large  Field, — for  those  days, — about  forty  or  fifty  riders, 
mounted  on  every  imaginable  kind  of  horse,  and  by  spectators  in  traps  of 
every  sort. 

Everybody  was  in  earnest,  and  among  the  names  of  those  who  were 
there  that  day  wall  be  found  many  familiar  ones  in  the  hunting  field  of  to- 
day, among  them  being  Messrs.  William  Jay,  Elliot  Zborowski,  Hermann 
Oelrichs,  Elliot  Roosevelt,  William  E.  Peet,  John  Sanford,  William  C. 
Sanford,  Dr.  James  Green,  Charles  G.  Frankhn,  Floyd  Brice,  Frank  Payson, 
Charles  G.  Peters,  Alfred  Gardner,  H.  L.  Herbert,  and  of  the  ladies.  Miss 
Hildegarde  Oelrichs,  later  Mrs.  Henderson ;  Mrs  Forbes-Morgan,  Miss  Lucy 
Oelrichs,  later  Mrs.  William  Jay;  Miss  Lucy  Work,  now  Mrs.  Cooper 
Hewitt,  and  Mrs.  Frank  Payson.  In  the  whole  Field,  there  were  perhaps 
half-a-dozen  qualified  hunters,  but  no  falls  were  recorded,  and  most  of  the 
Field  appear  to  have  finished  the  run. 

The  farmers  looked  upon  what  seemed  to  them  an  entire  novelty  with 
good  nature,  and  even  cheerfully  replaced  the  broken  rails.  Still  the  Hunt 
did  not  escape  all  opposition,  for  the  Quakers  of  the  neighborhood  de- 
nounced it  as  a  godless  employment,  and  Mr.  Henry  Bergh,  of  the  Society 
for  the  Prevention  of  Cruelty  to  Animals,  added  his  protest,  declaring  it  to 
be  "  an  evil  sport  and  unnaturally  cruel."  At  the  present  time,  it  seems  to 
us,  the  hunting  men  of  to-day,  that  the  criticisms  which  the  members  of  the 
fox-hunting  fraternity  had  to  meet  were  absurd  and  merely  expressions  of 
prejudice ;  but  we  must  remember  that  many  prejudices  have  died  in  the 
last  thirty  years  and  that  opinions  which  once  existed  among  the  Quakers 
of  Long  Island  have  now  ceased.  Mr.  Benjamin  D.  Hicks,  a  large  land- 
owner in  the  heart  of  the  Meadow  Brook  country,  a  man  of  strong  convic- 

74 


SAMUEL  WILLETS,   ESQ.,   M.F.H.    igo; 


THE    MEADOW    BROOK 

tions  but  of  consideration  for  the  opinions  of  others,  the  vice-president  of 
Mr.  Bergh's  society,  was  the  last  farmer  to  oppose  hunting  on  principle,  and 
all  opposition  on  that  ground  has  long  since  ceased. 

As  is  usually  the  case  in  a  country  where  hunting  is  new,  the  first  year 
was  very  successful.  Prosperity  smiled  on  the  farmer,  his  hay  and  straw 
found  a  ready  market  with  the  hunting  men,  who  rented  houses  and  stables 
which  had  long  lain  idle,  the  Fields  were  large,  and  at  the  end  of  the  sea- 
son, the  Hunt  gave  a  ball  to  the  farmers  and  their  families.  The  neighbor- 
hood lent  encouraging  aid  and  hunting  seemed  to  have  got  a  permanent 
hold  on  Long  Island. 

The  second  season  showed  the  reaction  from  the  energy  and  enthusiasm 
of  the  preceding  year,  which  is  often  the  case.  The  Fields  fell  off,  the  amity 
of  the  farmers  was  not  so  pronounced,  and  but  for  the  persistency  of  the 
originators  of  the  Hunt  it  perhaps  would  have  died  then.  But  they  con- 
tinued their  sport,  and  presently  things  began  to  look  up  again. 

The  hounds  were  moved  to  Central  Morrisania  in  Westchester  County, 
N.  Y., — now  a  solidly  built  suburb  of  the  metropolis,  —  where  Mr.  Griswold 
agreed  to  hunt  them  for  a  period  not  exceeding  two  years.  The  attempt  re- 
sulted in  a  failure;  the  going  proved  bad,  the  fences  unsuitable,  the  fields 
cramped  and  the  ground  too  soft  in  the  spring  to  be  ridden  over  with  any 
satisfaction.  It  was  in  no  sense  a  country  suitable  for  draghounds,  or,  in  fact, 
for  any  hounds;  and  although  the  kennels  were  moved  farther  out  —  to  New 
Rochelle  —  there  was  no  additional  benefit. 

On  Long  Island,  as  soon  as  the  Queen's  County  hounds  had  gone,  their 
loss  was  appreciated.  The  hunting  spirit  was  still  there,  although  dormant, 
and  by  the  spring  of  1 880  the  demand  for  another  pack  was  too  strong  to 
remain  unanswered,  and  Mr.  Belmont  Purdy  came  forward  with  a  proposi- 
tion to  support  a  pack  of  his  own.  He  commissioned  Mr.  J.  Burke-Roche 
to  send  him  hounds  from  Ireland,  and  established  what  is,  today,  the 
Meadow  Brook  Hunt.  In  this  he  was  assisted  by  Mr.  Thomas  Hitch- 
cock, Jr.,  who  had  just  returned  from  Oxford,  and  these  two  gentlemen, 
acting  together,  secured  the  support  of  the  hunting  men  on  Long  Island. 
The  pack  was  hunted  the  first  season  at  Mr.  Purdy's  own  expense,  with 

75 


THE    MEADOW    BROOK 

Charley  CuUinan  as  huntsman  and  Jim  Bergen  as  whipper-in;  and  the  sport 
Kimished  proving  most  satisfactory,  Long  Island  hunting  was  at  last  estab- 
lished on  a  permanent  basis. 

In  1881,  the  Club  was  incorporated,  among  its  chief  supporters  being 
Messrs.  William  Jay,  August  Belmont,  Winthrop  Rutherford  and  the  late 
William  R.  Travers,  who  was  elected  to  the  Presidency  of  the  newly 
formed  organization.  About  this  time,  Mr.  Griswold,  finding  that  the  West- 
chester country  was  unsatisfactory,  returned  to  Long  Island,  bringing  with 
him  the  Queen's  County  hounds,  of  which  he  was  now  sole  owner.  The 
Long  Island  country  was  large  enough  for  both  packs,  and  an  amicable  ar- 
rangement between  Mr.  Griswold  and  the  Meadow  Brook  Hunt  as  to  the 
division  of  the  country  was  made. 

The  Rockaway  Hunt,  which  enjoyed  many  years  of  prosperity  but  was 
eventually  driven  out  by  lack  of  sufficient  territory,  was  started  about  this 
time  by  Mr.  John  Cheever.  It  became  a  regular  organization  and  numbered 
among  its  Masters,  Messrs.  R.  L.  la  Montagne,  J.  G.  Austin,  Farley  Clark, 
John  E.  Cowdin,  Eben  Stevens,  Foxhall  P.  Keene  (\a\eT  M.  F.  H.  of 
Meadow  Brook),  and  at  one  time  was  hunted  by  Mr.  Griswold  in  connec- 
tion with  his  own  country.  Of  late  years,  the  Rockaway  Hunt  has  been 
rejuvenated  under  the  name  of  the  Rockaway  Hunting  Club,  and  although 
its  territory  does  not  permit  of  its  keeping  up  a  pack  of  foxhounds,  a  race- 
meeting  is  held  annually  at  Cedarhurst,  Long  Island,  and  its  members  always 
hope  that  at  some  future  date  the  pack  can  be  re-established. 

The  Meadow  Brook  Hunt  continued  to  gain  in  popularity  and,  after  a 
while,  Mr.  Belmont  Purdy  retired  from  the  Mastership  and  was  succeeded 
by  Mr.  F.  R.  Appleton.  After  Mr.  Appleton  came  Mr.  E.  D.  Morgan, 
Mr.  R.  W.  Stuart  and  Mr.  Thomas  Hitchcock,  Jr.,  in  1891  and  1892. 

In  1 893,  Mr.  Griswold  was  re-elected  Master  of  the  Meadow  Brook  and 
he,  after  supporting  the  Queen's  County  hounds  for  his  own  amusement  for 
a  number  of  years,  amalgamated  them  with  the  Meadow  Brook  pack  and 
continued  to  hunt  the  two  countries  until  1 895,  when  he  resigned,  turning 
the  country  over  to  the  Meadow  Brook  at  that  time. 

Mr.  Griswold  was  Master  of  Draghounds  from  1877  to  1895,  some  of 

76 


UOBERT  COTESWORTH,  HUNTSMAN   igO2-IQ04 


MICHAEL  HANLON,  HUNTSMAN 


THE    MEADOW    BROOK 

the  time  at  Meadow  Brook  and  the  rest  with  his  own  hounds.  During  that 
period,  he  hunted  the  hounds  himself  over  as  stiff  a  country  as  exists; 
country  which  would  make  the  average  Englishman  "sit  up,"  as  will  be  seen 
by  the  following  description  taken  verbatim  from  a  letter  by  Capt.  Pennell- 
Elmhirst  ("Brooksby") — himself  a  hard  man  to  hounds  all  his  life — writ- 
ten from  Meadow  Brook  and  to  be  found  in  his  book  "  The  Best  of  Fun." 

"Our  route  to  the  meet  ran  along  the  Hempstead  Plains,  on  whose  broad 
bosom  (as  enticing  for  a  gallop  almost  as  Newmarket  Heath)  the  Meadow 
Brook  Hunt  have  planted  their  house,  kennels  and  polo  ground.  On  our 
right  lay  farm  land  of  the  usual  Long  Island  type,  fields  of  somewhat  rugged 
grass,  now  brown  and  scorched  by  the  outgoing  heat-season,  and  stubble 
and  dust-garden  remaining  from  lately  gathered  harvest.  The  whole  is  upon 
a  light  loamy  soil  that  never  bakes  hard  and  so  never  rebels  obstinately 
against  a  horse's  footfall.  Thus  concussion  is  rmnimized  and  horses  can  go 
on  jumping  freely  year  after  year.  On  the  other  hand,  it  is  never  deep  or 
spongy  with  wet,  the  descending  rain  finding  its  way  rapidly  to  the  water- 
level,  some  six  feet  only  below  the  surface. 

"'Surely  you  don't  ride  at  a  flight  of  rails  like  that?'  I  enquired,  pointing 
to  a  first  barricade  that  met  my  troubled  gaze,  to  vnt, — a  mortised  erection 
of  open  bars,  each  of  them  as  thick  as  a  man's  thigh  and  the  lot  carried  con- 
siderably higher  than  an  ordinary  Leicestershire  gate.  '  Why  yes,  that's 
nothing  much.  The  farmers  aim  at  setting  their  fences  at  four  feet  eight  to 
keep  their  stock  in.'  I  asked  no  more,  but  held  my  peace,  while  the  horrid 
parallel  intruded  itself  upon  my  mind  of  the  condemned  man  in  the  prison-car 
catching  a  first  view  of  the  gallows  awaiting  him.  But  I  gazed  and  gazed  as 
each  successive  bone-trap  hove  in  view  and  you  may  depend  upon  it,  the 
longer  I  looked,  the  less  I  liked  them,  and  I  wondered  who  would  ride  the 
horses  at  home  in  Old  England." 

This  is  the  country  over  which  Mr.  Griswold  rode  for  nineteen  years;  and 
let  us  again  quote  from  "  Brooksby's  "  letter  to  show  how  he  did  it. 

"  With  the  Mastership,  be  it  added,  comes  the  privilege  at  all  times  and 
under  all  circumstances  of  leading  the  Field  in  pursuit  of  hounds.  Were 
this  rule  enforced  in  Old  England,  imagine  the  feelings  of  an  M.  F.  H. 

77 


THE    MEADOW    BROOK 

called  upon  to  live  in  front  of  the  galloping  hundreds  of  the  Quom  or  Pytch- 
ley,  or,  for  that  matter,  of  many  another  pack.  As  we  rode  to  the  meet,  I 
wondered  as  I  glanced  forward,  what  proportion,  or  if  even  a  substratum,  of 
truth  lay  in  the  comforting  words  of  the  Master.  '  Very  big  and  gaunt  these 
fences  look,'  1  remarked,  adding,  with  a  jauntiness  I  was  far  from  feeling, 
'but  they  say  the  horses  here  jump  well  enough.'  '  Oh,  you'll  find  some  rails 
down  or  a  gap  in  almost  every  one,'  he  answered,  and  1  believed  him  as  the 
artless  miner  believed  the  heathen  Chinee.  But  see,  what  is  he  doing  now? 
Where  are  the  rails  down,  and  where  is  the  gap?  Six  foot  of  timber,  surely, 
and  he  is  within  three  strides,  both  ears  cocked  and  both  spurs  in.  Nay,  I 
will  lower  six  inches,  but  never  another  inch,  an  I  have  to  prove  it  at  pistol 
point.  Well,  it  was  death  or  degradation  now  and  no  time  to  balance  the 
account,  so  I  gave  the  old  horse  a  strong  pull,  gripped  him  tight  between  my 
nervous  knees,  chose  my  panel  some  three  lengths  from  my  instigator  and  sat 
still  for  the  result.  Rugged  and  awful  loomed  the  ponderous  top  rail  on  a 
level  with  my  horse's  ears,  one  of  which — ill  omen — was  twinkhng  toward 
the  exemplar  on  our  right.  A  moment  more  and  we  seemed  right  under 
the  frowning  barricade,  then  a  hoist,  a  bang,  a  prolonged  quiver,  but  no  fall, 
though  a  yard  of  turf  was  ploughed  up,  and  the  demonstrator  turned  quietly 
in  his  saddle  for  a  smile  and  a  word  of  encouragement." 

Mr.  Griswold  was  succeeded  in  1896  by  Mr.  Ralph  N.  Ellis,  under 
whose  management  the  Hunt  flourished  for  six  years.  Mr.  Ellis  is  a  strong 
believer  in  American  hounds,  and  toward  the  latter  part  of  his  Mastership  he 
brought  his  own  pack  of  American  hounds  into  the  country,  kenneling  them  a 
few  miles  away  from  the  Club  and  taking  them  out  two  days  a  week  after  foxes. 

While  the  experiment  was  not  wholly  successful,  it  gave  the  followers  of 
the  Meadow  Brook  drag  a  zest  for  the  "real  thing,"  and  fox-hunting  was 
established  as  one  of  the  regular  pursuits,  a  certain  element  preferring  it  to 
the  more  exciting  occupation  of  drag-hunting.  Mr.  Ellis  resigned  as  Master 
at  the  end  of  the  season  of  1 902,  and  Mr.  Foxhall  P.  Keene  was  elected 
in  his  place.  Much  of  the  early  history  of  the  Meadow  Brook  which  is  here 
written  is  taken  from  an  article  on  hunting  written  by  Mr.  Ellis  in  1 90 1 . 

With  the  coming  of  Mr.  Keene  as  M.  F.  H.,  a  new  system  began  at 

78 


HUNT  STAFF  AND  HOUNDS 


V3'*-..W4 


THE  HOUXDS 


THE    MEADOW    BROOK 

Meadow  Brook,  for  Mr.  Ellis  had  given  the  Field  a  taste  of  fox-hunting  and 
they  wanted  more.  Mr.  Keene  is  a  staunch  believer  in  the  English  system 
of  hunting  and  in  the  English  foxhound,  and  he  decided  to  give  it  to  them 
along  those  lines.  Accordingly  he  purchased,  in  1 902,  Mr.  Salkeld's  entire 
pack,  which  was  offered  for  sale  in  England.  Mr.  Salkeld's  foxhounds  had 
been  hunted  about  the  rough,  hilly  country  of  Cumberland,  where  the  coverts 
are  large  and  the  scenting  conditions  poor,  and  Mr.  Keene  thought  that  they 
would  be  admirably  suited  to  conditions  on  Long  Island.  In  order  that  no 
stone  should  be  left  unturned  to  make  this  experiment  successful,  he  engaged 
Robert  Cotesworth  to  come  to  America  and  act  as  huntsman  to  the  Meadow 
Brook. 

Cotesworth  had  had  a  long  experience  with  the  best  packs  in  England, 
having  served  as  a  whipper-in  at  Atherstone,  Brocklesby  and  Belvoir,  and 
as  huntsman  to  Earl  Bathurst's  Vale  of  White  Horse  foxhounds.  With 
Cotesworth  came  his  son  Tom,  who  acted  in  the  capacity  of  first  whipper- 
in,  while  Hannon,  who  had  been  a  long  time  at  Meadow  Brook,  served  as 
second  whipper-in.  Thirty-two  couples  comprised  the  Salkeld  pack  and 
with  these  Mr.  Keene  hunted  foxes  three  days  a  week,  the  draghounds  go- 
ing out  on  the  other  three  days  as  before.  The  experiment  was  not  wholly 
successful,  the  scenting  conditions  on  the  sandy  Long  Island  soil  being  far 
from  good ;  and,  although  the  Fields  were  large,  Mr.  Keene  was  discour- 
aged and  in  1 904  gave  up  the  Mastership  and  sold  the  entire  hunting  es- 
tablishment at  auction.  The  hounds,  which  had  been  very  successful "  on  the 
flags,"  having  won  at  the  Westminster  Kennel  Club  Show  at  the  Garden  in 
1 905,  were  bought  in  by  the  Club,  and  the  Mastership  passed  to  Mr.  P. 
F.  Collier,  who  had  for  a  long  time  maintained  a  pack  of  his  own  in  Mon- 
mouth County,  New  Jersey.  The  Cotesworths  both  left  and  went  to  the 
Middlesex,  and  Mr.  Collier  found  himself  without  a  huntsman  for  his  pack. 
He  made  arrangements  with  Mr.  John  Foster  of  England  to  hunt  the  Eng- 
lish hounds  for  him  three  days  a  week,  and  they  were  so  hunted  during  the 
season  of  1905-6.  Mr.  Collier  also  made  arrangements  with  Mr.  H.  I. 
Varner  of  Arkansas  to  bring  his  pack  of  American  hounds  to  the  Meadow 
Brook  country  and  hunt  them  on  alternate  days  with  the  English  hounds. 

79 


THE    MEADOW    BROOK 

The  drag  pack,  which  was  the  property  of  the  Club,  continued  to  go  out 
three  days  a  week  in  the  afternoon,  making  a  total  of  nine  "days"  (!)  a 
week  during  the  season  of  1905-6. 

This  proved  a  failure,  Mr.  Foster  failing  to  show  even  as  good  sport  with 
the  English  foxhounds  as  Cotesworth  had,  and  at  the  end  of  the  season  his 
connection  wth  the  Hunt  was  severed.  Neither  did  Mr.  Vamer  show  any 
great  sport,  cind  he  returned  to  Arkansas  at  the  end  of  the  season.  The 
drag  continued  to  hold  its  own  in  the  eyes  of  the  hard-riding  element  who 
only  considered  hounds  as  an  excuse  for  a  steeplechase. 

The  season  of  1906—7  was  rather  more  successful.  James  Blaxland 
hunted  Mr.  Collier's  American  foxhounds,  while  Edgar  Caffyn  acted  as 
huntsman  to  the  draghounds,  now  recruited  by  the  remains  of  Mr.  Keene's 
once  famous  pack,  many  of  which  had  been  sold ;  but  Mr.  Collier  found  that 
he  could  not  spare  the  time  to  devote  to  two  packs,  and  as  he  wished  to 
continue  his  private  pack  in  New  Jersey,  he  resigned  his  Mastership  at  the 
close  of  the  season.  In  the  spring  of  1 907,  the  draghounds  were  hunted  by 
a  committee,  but  b  the  summer  Mr.  Samuel  Willets  was  elected  to  the 
Mastership,  and  as  he  had  no  proper  pack  of  foxhounds,  he  invited  Mr. 
Paul  Rciiney  to  hunt  the  country  three  days  a  week  wth  his  private  pack  of 
American  foxhounds,  the  draghounds  continuing  to  go  out  as  usual  under 
Mr.  Willets'  Mastership. 

This  is  the  state  of  affairs  at  Meadow  Brook  at  present  writing,  Mr. 
Willets  now  having  about  thirty  couples  of  Ejiglish  hounds  m  the  kennels. 
Just  what  the  coming  years  may  bring  forth  is  an  open  question ;  but  certain 
it  is  that  the  members  of  the  Hunt  and  the  residents  of  Long  Island  ^v•ill  a\- 
ways  wish  sport  of  some  sort  —  be  it  drag-hunting  or  fox-hunting  —  across 
their  country. 


80 


CLAUDE  HATCHER,  HUNTSMAN 


The  Middleburg  Hunt 


DISTINCTIVE  COLLAR Black  velvet 

MASTER - - Samuel  P.  Fred,  Esq. 

HUNTSMAN - Claude    Hatcher 

KENNELS  AND  POST-OFFICE Middleburg,  Va. 

DAYS  OF  MEETING - Wednesday  and  Friday 

LENGTH  OF  SEASON October  1st  to  March  15th 


THE  Middleburg  Hunt  dates,  as  an  organization,  from  1 906,  and 
was  founded  by  Messrs.  Samuel  P.  Fred,  H.  J.  and  A.  S. 
Duffy,  Johnson  Russell,  John  R.  Townsend,  Dr.  Luck  and 
several  others. 

In  1905,  hunting  about  Middleburg  was  given  a  great  impetus  by  the 
fox-hunting  match  between  the  Middlesex  and  Grafton  Hounds,  which 
took  place  partly  in  that  country.  The  Master  of  the  Middlesex  made  his 
headquarters  at  Middleburg,  and  many  of  the  meets  were  held  in  what  is 
now  the  Middleburg  country.  Such  good  sport  was  the  result  that,  in  1 906, 
the  landowners  about  Middleburg  invited  Mr.  Higginson,  Master  of  the 
Middlesex,  to  come  back  and  hunt  the  country ;  but  arrangements  having 
already  been  made  by  him  to  hunt  the  Loudoun  Hunt  country,  adjoining, 
he  was  compelled  to  decline. 

In  the  spring  of  1906  there  was  a  good  deal  of  trouble  between  Mr. 
Harry  W.  Smith,  M.  F.  H.  of  the  Grafton,  and  Mr.  John  R.  Townsend 
M.  F.  H.  of  the  Orange  County,  with  kennels  at  The  Plains,  Va.,  as  to  who 
should  hunt  at  Middleburg  the  following  season,  Mr.  Smith's  claims  being 
backed  by  the  Piedmont  Hunt,  which  had  always  hunted  over  the  district. 
Mr.  Townsend,  however,  eventually  got  the  better  of  the  dispute  and  he 
installed  part  of  the  Orange  County  pack  at  Middleburg  v^ath  Mr.  Percy 
Evans  as  Deputy- Master.     During  the  season  of  1 906,  The  Plains  country 

81 


THE    MIDDLEBURG 

and  the  Middleburg  country  were  hunted  in  this  manner,  and  the  Orange 
County  showed  very  satisfactory  sport  at  both  places. 

In  1 907,  Mr.  Evans  resigning  his  office  as  Deputy-Master,  Mr.  Townsend 
took  up  the  Mastership  himself,  leaving  Claude  Hatcher,  the  huntsman,  in 
charge  of  the  Middleburg  pack,  which  also  hunted  the  Piedmont  country. 
This  courtesy  was  extended  by  Mr.  R.  Hunter  Dulany,  to  whom  the  hered- 
itary title  to  the  Piedmont  Mastership  had  descended  on  the  death  of  his 
father,  Col.  Richard  H.  Dulany. 

In  1 908,  Mr.  Samuel  P.  Fred  was  elected  Master  of  the  Middleburg 
Hunt,  and  although  the  club  is,  in  reality,  an  offshoot  of  the  Orange  County 
Hunt  and  owns  no  hounds  of  its  own,  it  still  retains  recognition  from  the 
National  Steeplechase  and  Hunt  Association.  Just  what  hounds  will  hunt 
their  country  another  season  is  in  doubt,  although  it  is  probable  that  the 
Orange  County  will  resume  its  sway. 

The  country,  which  is  surrounded  by  the  territory  of  the  Loudoun  County, 
Orange  County  and  Piedmont  Hunts,  is  as  good  as  could  be  asked  for.  Its 
greatest  drawback  is  Goose  Creek,  a  stream  which  runs  through  much  of  its 
best  territory,  and  which,  although  it  is  fordable  in  many  places,  sometimes 
spoils  a  good  run  for  the  Field.  But  there  is  a  lot  of  open  country  lying  be- 
tween Aldie  and  Middleburg,  pretty  free  from  wire,  and  well  supplied  with 
foxes,  which  gives  excellent  sport.  The  fences  are  rather  easier  than  in  the 
Loudoun  country,  though  on  the  Piedmont  side  there  are  many  stone  walls 
of  great  size,  and  it  requires  a  good,  big-jumping  horse  to  carry  a  man  well 
over  the  country.  The  authors  well  remember  a  run  during  the  hound 
match  in  1 905  when  a  fox  was  found  near  Goose  Creek,  along  whose  banks 
there  are  many  earths,  which  gave  the  Field  the  best  kind  of  going  at  top- 
pace  for  over  an  hour  v^th  hardly  a  strand  of  wire  in  the  line. 

Mr.  Townsend  has  hunted  the  country  with  both  English  and  American 
hounds  and  has  come  to  prefer  the  latter,  though  perhaps  he  has  hardly  given 
the  former  a  fair  trial. 

Whoever  hunts  the  Middleburg  country  may  be  assured  of  warm  support 
from  the  landowners  themselves,  most  of  whom  are  hunting  men  and  breed 
as  fine  a  type  of  horse  for  the  country  as  can  be  found  anywhere. 

82 


A.    HLNKV    UK.CINSON,    ESIJ.,    M.F.H. 


The  Middlesex  Foxhounds 

(MR.  HIGGINSON'S) 

DISTINCTIVE  COLLAR White  (Green  facings  and  piping  worn  by 

Master  and  servants  only.) 

EVENING  DRESS Scarlet  coat,  white  collar,  green  facings 

MASTER A.  Henry  Higginson,  Esq. 

SECRETARY - Grafton  St.  L.  Abbott.  Esq.,  Concord,  Mass. 

HUNTSMAN The  Master 

KENNEL  HUNTSMAN - Edward  Cotesworth 

WHIPPERS-IN  - - S  !"',  David  Thornton 

(  2nd,  r  red  Hoxford 

HOUNDS 50  couples,  English 

KENNELS  AND  POST-OFFICE South  Lincoln,  Mass. 

DAYS  OF  MEETING Monday,  Wednesday,  Friday  and  Saturday 

LENGTH  OF  SEASON - August  1st  to  February  1st 


MANY  people  in  Massachusetts  think  that  fox-hunting  proper 
is  quite  impossible  in  that  State  because  of  the  difficulty  of 
riding  to  hounds.  If  the  matter  is  carefully  looked  into  they 
would  see,  as  have  the  followers  of  the  Middlesex,  that  while  it  is  impossible 
to  be  with  hounds  all  the  time,  it  is  perfectly  feasible  to  be  on  terms  with 
them  in  nine  cases  out  of  ten,  and  that,  given  a  fair  chance  and  efficient  earth- 
stopping,  hounds  will  kill  often  enough  to  keep  blooded,  while  the  lover  of 
hound  work  will  be  rewarded  by  many  a  good  hunting  day.  At  Myopia 
and  Norfolk,  both  near  neighbors  of  the  Middlesex,  only  the  drag  is  hunted, 
and  when  one  realizes  that  many  of  their  members  are  business  men  with  too 
many  duties  to  allow  them  to  devote  an  entire  day  to  the  sport,  this  is  quite 
natural.  At  Middlesex  it  is  somewhat  different ;  the  pack  is  in  every  sense 
a  private  one  and  the  Hunt  Club  proper,  which  is  very  small,  has  little  to  do 
with  its  management,  the  Field  being  free  to  all. 

83 


THE    MIDDLESEX 

The  Hunt  dates  from  1 897,  when  the  Ridgewood  Beagles  were  hunted 
under  the  joint  Mastership  of  Messrs.  R.  B.  Baker  and  A.  Henry  Higginson 
in  a  small  area  which  is  now  a  portion  of  the  present  Middlesex  country. 
For  several  years  the  hounds  were  kenneled  at  Mr.  Baker's  place  near  Wal- 
tham,  and  it  was  not  until  1 90 1  that  recognition  from  the  National  Steeple- 
chase and  Hunt  Association  was  applied  for  and  granted.  At  that  time  the 
present  Master  had  been  hunting  the  little  hounds  around  South  Lincoln  for 
about  a  year,  with  the  two  Messrs.  Baker  acting  as  amateur  whippers-in. 
The  Hunt  grew  by  degrees,  and  presently,  as  is  always  the  case,  the  need  for 
better  and  faster  hounds  was  felt.  A  draft  of  foxhounds  was  accordingly 
purchased  from  the  Myopia,  but  as  these  did  not  prove  to  be  just  what  was 
wanted,  a  friend  in  England  was  pressed  into  service  and  a  draft  sent  from 
there.  These  first  hounds  came  from  the  Brookside  Harriers,  an  old  pack, 
which  Mr.  Steyning  Baird  had  just  given  up,  and  were  really  miniature 
foxhounds.  They  served  very  well  for  a  year  or  two  on  the  drag,  and  if 
that  kind  of  cross-country  riding  had  remained  the  only  form  of  sport,  matters 
might  not  have  taken  the  turn  they  did.  But  one  day,  late  in  the  season,  the 
harriers  were  taken  out  after  foxes,  stumbled  on  to  a  good  line  and  furnished 
such  a  good  run  that  it  was  promptly  decided  that  the  acquisition  of  a  good 
pack  of  foxhounds  was  the  next  step. 

With  this  object  in  view  the  Master  went  to  England  in  the  spring  of  1 904 
and  there  was  lucky  enough  to  fall  into  very  good  hands.  Mr.  C.  W.  B. 
Femie  of  Leicester  was  kind  enough  to  let  his  draft  for  the  year  go  a  bit 
early,  and  with  eleven  couples  from  this  well-known  pack,  which  is  full  of  the 
peerless  Belvoir  blood,  the  Middlesex  pack  of  today  was  founded.  Early  in 
August,  twenty  more  couples  came  over  from  England  and  wath  these  came 
Will  Ryder,  who  had  been  engaged  by  Charles  Isaac,  Mr.  Fernie's  hunts- 
man, to  act  as  whipper-in.  Then  followed  a  series  of  calamities ;  the  Master 
was  ill  and  out  of  the  saddle  most  of  the  autumn,  and  although  Mr.  J.  I. 
Chamberlain  was  an  efficient  Field  Master,  he  was  handicapped  by  the  loss 
of  Ryder,  who  had  to  go  home  to  England. 

About  this  time,  however,  Mr.  Foxhall  P.  Keene  gave  up  the  Master- 
ship of  the  Meadow  Brook  Hounds  on  Long  Island,  and  Bob  Cotesworth, 

84 


NED  COTESWORTH,   KENNEL  HtlNTSMAN 


THE    MIDDLESEX 

who  had  come  from  England  to  hunt  the  Meadow  Brook  in  1905,  resigned 
his  position  and  came  to  the  Middlesex.  He  was  the  right  man  at  the  right 
time,  and  his  judgment  and  skill  in  kennel  and  field  management  made  a 
great  deal  of  difference  to  the  Master,  who  was  practically  a  novice  at  the 
gcune.  While  he  was  with  the  Middlesex  the  latter  ceased  to  hunt  the 
hounds  himself,  deeming  it  wiser  to  leave  that  part  of  the  work  to  the  little 
man  from  Leicestershire,  who,  with  his  experience  from  Belvoir,  Atherstone, 
Brocklesby,  etc.,  in  old  England,  to  aid  him,  did  wonders  in  New  England. 

In  1 905,  more  hounds  came  from  Mr.  Femie's,  sent  by  Charles  Isaac,  who 
takes  great  interest  in  his  "  American  pack,"  as  he  calls  it ;  and  wath  plenty 
of  good  blood  to  breed  from,  Cotesworth  succeeded  in  greatly  improving  the 
pack,  both  in  working  qualities  and  general  levelness.  Among  the  excellent 
hounds  bred  in  the  kennels  during  his  regime,  "Fancy,"  "Nimrod,"  "Nota- 
ble," and  "  Purity,"  all  entered  in  1 906,  are  worthy  of  particular  mention  as 
having  done  well,  both  in  the  field  and  on  the  flags. 

Middlesex  County,  lying  as  it  does  not  far  from  Boston,  is  very  accessible 
to  sportsmen,  and  although,  like  all  New  England  countries,  it  is  hampered 
by  wire  and  the  size  of  the  coverts,  two  obstacles  that  make  it  difficult  to 
get  as  good  runs  as  might  be  desired,  it  abounds  in  red  foxes,  which  give 
hounds  plenty  to  do. 

The  season  of  1904,  Cotesworth's  first,  was  productive  of  two  results. 
The  first  of  these  was  an  excellent  season,  and  the  second  the  controversy  in 
the  columns  of  The  Rider  and  Drioer  between  Mr.  Harry  W.  Smith, 
Master  of  the  Grafton,  and  the  Master  of  the  Middlesex  anent  the  compara- 
tive excellence  of  English  and  American  hounds.  This  led  to  the  now  famous 
English-American  foxhound  match  in  the  Piedmont  Valley  of  Virginia  in 
the  autumn  of  1 905.  It  is  not  the  intention  of  the  authors  to  discuss  this 
question  here ;  it  is  now  a  matter  of  history.  Whatever  its  faults,  the  match 
resulted  in  some  very  good  days  in  the  hunting  field,  and  both  contestants 
came  away  with  a  better  opmion  of  their  rivals  than  they  had  previously  held, 
while  from  a  spectacular  point  of  view  it  was  a  great  event.  America  is  not 
England,  and  when  a  Field  of  eighty  turns  up  to  meet  hounds,  as  was  the 
case  the  opening  day,  on  the  picturesque  lawn  of  Col.  Dulany's  country  seat, 

85 


THE    MIDDLESEX 

"  Wellboume,"  it  means  a  good  deal.  Representatives  of  twenty-six  Hunts 
were  there  that  day,  and  many  of  them  had  come  a  long  journey  to  be 
present.  There  were  some  very  good  days  in  the  fortnight  which  followed ; 
and  when  the  Middlesex  hounds  finally  went  north  again  to  their  home  country 
they  left  many  friends  behind  them. 

The  match  was  productive  of  one  result  which  made  a  great  deal  of  dif- 
ference in  the  future  of  the  pack.  Up  to  that  time  the  Virginians  had  not 
seen  what  a  really  good  pack  of  English  foxhounds  could  do;  in  fact,  they 
were  very  much  under  the  impression  that  English  hounds,  while  they  might 
be  all  right  in  their  own  country,  could  show  no  sport  in  America,  a  judg- 
ment based  on  the  work  of  a  few  single  hounds  which  had  drifted  into  the 
country.  So  good,  however,  were  some  of  the  days  in  1905,  that  the  Vir- 
ginians began  to  think  that,  after  all,  there  was  a  good  deal  of  sport  m  hunt- 
ing behind  a  pack  of  well-mannered  hounds  which  ran  together  and  were 
amenable  to  some  discipline,  even  if  they  were  not  quite  so  good  at  cold 
trailing  as  their  American  cousins.  At  any  rate,  in  the  spring  of  1 906,  Mr. 
Higginson  received  an  invitation  from  the  Masters  of  both  the  Piedmont  and 
the  Loudoun  County  Hunts  to  take  three  days  a  week  of  their  respective 
countries  for  the  following  season.  The  objection  to  this  plan  was,  of  course, 
that  it  meant  a  shortening  of  the  home  season  in  Massachusetts,  but  arrange- 
ments were  finally  made  by  which  this  could  be  done  to  the  satisfaction  of 
all  concerned.  Thirty-five  couples  of  hounds,  together  with  horses  and  the 
Hunt  staff,  went  to  Leesburg,  Virginia,  in  the  Loudoun  country,  and  ken- 
neled there  at  "Big  Spring  Farm,"  very  kindly  loaned  by  Westmoreland 
Davis,  Esq.,  M.  F.  H.  of  the  Loudoun  County  Hunt ;  and  during  the  months 
of  November,  December  and  January,  the  Middlesex  went  out  three  days  a 
week  and  the  Loudoun  two.  The  Loudoun  country  borders  on  that  over 
which  the  foxhound  match  had  been  held  in  the  previous  year,  so  that 
some  of  it  was  familiar  to  Bob  Cotesworth,  who  hunted  the  hounds  this 
season  for  the  last  time,  with  Harry  Hopkins,  late  of  the  Vine,  and  Will 
Edwards  as  whippers-in. 

Loudoun  County  and  its  bordering  country  is  the  equal,  if  not  the  superior, 
of  any  hunting  country  in  America.     The  coverts  are  large,  but  not  so  large 

86 


THE    MIDDLESEX 

that  it  is  hard  to  get  foxes  out  of  them;  and  once  out,  one  has  the  finest 
possible  country  to  ride  over.  The  fences  are  big  and  stiff,  and  it  takes  "a 
horse  and  a  man"  to  negotiate  them,  but  what  fox-hunter  minds  the  fences 
on  a  crisp  autumn  day  when  hounds  are  running?  Foxes,  too,  are  fairly 
abundant,  and  the  Master  was  glad  at  the  end  of  the  season  to  accept  the 
invitation  of  the  Loudoun  Hunt  Committee  to  "  come  back  again." 

Bob  Cotesworth  resigned  at  the  end  of  the  season,  thus  ending  a  thirty 
years  service  in  the  hunting  field,  leaving  the  pack,  which  he  had  done  so 
much  toward  making  in  the  new  country,  in  excellent  shape  for  the  Master, 
who  had  decided  to  resume  the  hunting  of  them  himself.  He  was  succeeded 
in  the  kennel  by  his  brother  Ned,  late  huntsman  to  the  Linlithgow  and  Stir- 
lingshire, while  Will  Edwards  was  promoted  to  the  position  of  first  whipper- 
in  and  a  new  man,  David  Thornton,  engaged  as  second.  The  season  of 
1 907-8  in  Virginia  was  far  better  than  that  of  1 906-7 ;  foxes  being  more 
plentiful,  scenting  conditions  better,  and  the  hounds  themselves  much  im- 
proved, this  year  taking  the  field  four  days  a  week  from  October  I  5th  to 
February  I  st.  The  plan  of  going  to  Virginia  for  the  latter  part  of  the  hunt- 
ing season  has  now  become  a  regular  thing  with  the  Middlesex,  as  it  admits 
of  hunting  at  least  three  months  after  the  frost  has  made  sport  impossible  in 
the  north. 

The  home  country  about  Lincoln  is  far  from  being  a  bad  one,  and  is  very 
fortunate  in  having  an  excellent  class  of  landowners  who  enjoy  the  sport  and 
are  justly  proud  of  the  pack  and  its  prowess  all  over  the  country.  Puppy 
walkers  are  always  to  be  found,  and  the  annual  Puppy  Show  in  the  spring 
and  the  Horse  Show  in  the  autumn  are  gala  days  for  the  countryside. 
Drag-hunting  has  now  been  completely  abandoned,  the  Master  beginning  his 
cubbing  early  in  August,  and  the  sport  continuing  at  Lincoln  until  the  mid- 
dle of  October,  when  the  pack  goes  south  and  hunts  until  the  frost  puts  a 
stop  to  it,  usually  about  February  I  st. 

Just  a  word  here  as  to  the  pack.  As  has  been  stated,  most  of  the  parent 
stock  came  from  Mr.  Fernie's,  although  there  has  been  a  slight  infusion  of 
Milton  Fitzwilliam  and  Badminton  blood,  while  a  few  hounds  have  come 
from  the  Warwickshire  and  Southdown.     The  Master's  theory  always  has 

87 


THE    MIDDLESEX 

been  to  get  the  best  blood  that  could  be  procured  in  draft  hounds,  and  then 
from  these  to  breed  such  a  pack  as  was  needed  to  do  the  best  work  under 
existing  conditions.  While  the  motto  "  Handsome  is  as  handsome  does,"  is 
applied  in  the  drafting  of  such  hounds  as  are  not  first-class  in  the  field,  the 
Middlesex  has  always  been  prominent  on  the  flags,  and  its  successes  at  the 
Westminster  Kennel  Club  shows  in  the  winter  and  the  National  Hound 
shows  in  the  spring  are  well  known. 

It  may  be  interesting  to  note  that  the  first  National  Hound  Show,  mod- 
elled on  the  famous  Hound  Show  at  Peterboro,  England,  was  held  at 
South  Lincoln,  near  the  kennels  of  the  Middlesex,  in  1 906.  This  initial 
effort  met  with  such  success  that  succeedmg  shows  were  held  in  1907  and 
1 908,  and  the  affair  is  now  an  annual  fixture.  Cups  are  offered  by  Masters 
of  Hounds  all  over  the  United  States  and  Canada,  and  at  the  mitial  show 
three  noted  Masters  in  England,  His  Grace  the  Duke  of  Beaufort,  G.  C.  W. 
Fitzwilliam,  Esq.,  and  C.  W.  B.  Fernie,  Esq.,  lent  their  support  by  doing 
likewise. 


88 


J.  L.  STACK,  ESQ.,  M.F.H. 


The  Midlothian  Hunt  Club 

DISTINCTIVE  COLLAR Green  velvet 

EVENING  DRESS Scarlet  coat,  green  facmgs 

MASTER - - - J.  L.  Stack,  Esq. 

SECRETARY - S.  C.  Stewart.  Esq.,  Chicago,  111. 

HUNTSMAN James  Walker 

WHIPPERS-IN \    ''*'  ^^"  McDurmat 

(  2nd,  Percy  Hamilton 

HOUNDS 11  1-2  couples,  American 

KENNELS ., Midlothian,  111. 

POST-OFFICE - - Blue  Island,  111. 

DAYS  OF  MEETING - Monday,  Wednesday  and  Saturday 

LENGTH  OF  SEASON  \  Spring  season,  five  weeks.  Summer,  once  a 

week  at  daybreak.  Autumn,  three  months 


DURING  the  summer  of  1 903,  a  number  of  gentlemen  belonging 
to  the  Midlothian  Country  Club,  situated  about  twenty  miles  out 
of  Chicago  on  the  Rock  Island  Railway,  decided  to  follow  the 
example  of  the  Onwentsia  of  Lake  Forest,  near  Chicago,  and  to  form  a  club 
within  a  club,  as  it  were,  by  starting  a  pack  of  hounds.  Among  these  gentle- 
men were  the  Messrs.  H.  L.  Swift,  Keith  Spalding,  James  D.  Small,  Robert 
J.  Thome,  Thomas  E.  Donnelly,  Wallace  de  Wolfe,  Robert  P.  Lament,  J. 
L.  Stack  and  Dyke  Williams. 

Few  of  them  knew  anything  about  hunting,  but,  all  being  interested  in 
horses,  these  pioneers  felt  that  it  could  be  made  a  success  at  Midlothian  as 
it  had  at  Onwentsia.  Mr.  James  L.  Stack  was  elected  Master  and  has  con- 
tinued to  fill  that  position  up  to  the  present  time. 

Of  course,  it  is  always  a  great  advantage  to  a  Hunt  to  have  the  same 
Master  continuously.    He  gets  in  touch  with  the  landowners  and  it  makes  a 

89 


THE    MIDLOTHIAN 

great  deal  of  difference  to  everyone  to  know  that  the  regime  is  a  good  one. 
Whether  it  is  due  to  this  state  of  affairs  or  to  Mr.  Stack's  gift  of  making  the 
farmers  happy  is  difficult  to  say,  but  it  is  probably  due  to  a  little  of  both.  At 
any  rate,  in  the  five  seasons  during  which  the  present  Master  has  presided 
over  the  pack,  he  has  succeeded  in  getting  them  to  take  a  stand  which  few 
of  the  westerners  do.  They  are  exceptionally  liberal;  in  fact,  Mr.  Stack 
informs  us  that  most  of  them  are  not  only  willing  but  desirous  of  having  the 
Hunt  m  their  country.  As  has  been  pomted  out  in  several  of  the  articles  in 
this  book,  the  landowners  have  many  things  to  gain  by  having  foxhounds  on 
their  land,  and  this  is  especially  true  of  those  owning  farms  near  a  prosperous 
country  club  in  the  vicinity  of  a  big  city.  Many  a  prospective  landowner 
gets  his  first  glimpse  of  his  future  country-seat  while  following  hounds,  and 
the  more  intelligent  class  of  farmers  are  not  slow  in  finding  this  out.  The 
question  of  being  allowed  to  ride  over  the  land  is  a  very  great  one  in  America, 
and  particularly  in  the  west,  where  there  are  few  settlers  from  the  mother 
country  who  understand  the  game  and  like  it.  Wire,  too,  plays  an  impor- 
tant, though  disagreeable,  part  in  the  history  of  most  of  the  western  packs, 
and  this  evil  has  been  overcome  at  Midlothian  by  panelling  fences  with  timber 
in  the  usual  manner.  The  country,  except  for  this  evil,  is  unusually  good  in 
wet  as  well  as  in  dry  weather,  as  it  is,  for  the  most  part,  sound  high  land. 

The  pack  is  composed  of  American  hounds,  which  the  Master  considers 
better  suited  to  his  purposes,  and  as  most  of  the  subscribers  are  business  men, 
the  Club  numbering  few  ladies  among  its  followers,  the  drag  is  resorted  to 
as  a  rule,  but  it  is  hoped  that  in  due  course  of  time,  one  day  a  week  will  be 
devoted  to  fox-hunting. 


90 


DR.   M.  O  MALL-L'i    K.\ull,    Uu-\.    UL.\lsilA.\ 


The  Millbrook  Hunt 

DISTINCTIVE  COLLAR - Black  with  green  piping 

MASTER Charles  C.  MarshaU.  Esq.,  MiUbrook.  N.  Y. 

HON.  HUNTSMAN J.  Middleton  O'Malley  Knott,  M.  D. 

HON.  WHIPPER-IN W.  A.  Laing,  Esq. 

HOUNDS 1 0  couples,  English 

KENNELS - "Milestone,"  Millbrook,  N.  Y. 

POST-OFFICE Millbrook,  N.  Y. 

DAYS  OF  MEETING Monday  and  Saturday 

LENGTH  OF  SEASON September  1st  to  May  15th 


DUTCHESS  COUNTY,  New  York,  is  a  comparatively  unex- 
|plored  country  from  a  hunting  point  of  view,  although  Mr.  G. 
Howard  Davison  of  the  Altamont  Stock  Farm  maintained  a 
small  private  pack  in  the  late  nineties  which  was  used  for  a  season  or  two 
for  drag-  and  hare-hunting.  In  August,  1 907,  a  draft  of  six  couples  of  Eng- 
lish foxhounds  was  imported  by  Mr.  Charles  C.  Marshall,  and  these,  aug- 
mented by  seven  couples,  the  gift  of  Mr.  Charles  D.  Freeman,  formerly 
Master  of  the  Watchung  Hunt,  were  established  in  kennels  at  Millbrook. 
A  number  of  the  residents  of  the  neighborhood,  all  of  whom  owned  large 
estates,  subscribed  to  the  maintenance  of  the  pack,  among  them  being  Mrs. 
Daniel  S.  Lamont  and  the  Messrs.  Oakleigh  Thome,  L.  Stuart  Wing,  H. 
H.  Flagler,  Barnes  Compton,  H.  Louis  Slade,  J.  T.  Tower,  J.  Morgan  Wing, 
and  H.  R.  McLean.  Mr.  Charles  C.  Marshall,  who  owns  the  pack,  was 
elected  Master,  and  Dr.  Middleton  O'Malley  Knott,  formerly  Master  and 
Honorary  Huntsman  to  the  Watchung,  consented  to  act  in  the  latter  capacity 
to  the  new  organization,  with  Mr.  W.  A.  Laing  turning  hounds  to  him. 

Mr.  Marshall  and   Dr.  Knott   are    both    keen    hound    men,   and    are 
taking  the  utmost  pains  in  their  hound  breeding  in  the  hope  of  establishing  a 

91 


THE    MILLBROOK 

first-class  pack  to  hunt  the  foxes  which  abound  in  the  neighborhood.  The 
country  is  an  open  one,  consisting  largely  of  extensive  tracts  of  pasture  land 
interspersed  with  large,  highly  cultivated  farms.  The  surface  of  the  country 
varies,  the  minimum  elevation  being  about  four  hundred  feet  and  the  max- 
imum thirteen  hundred.  Level  stretches  of  large  extent  are  found  in  the 
valleys,  but  the  character  of  the  country  is  generally  rolling.  The  going  is 
unusually  firm,  and  owing  to  the  dryness  of  the  soil  the  season  often  remains 
open  far  into  the  winter,  and  hounds  are  seldom  stopped  by  frost.  The  fences, 
which  are  quite  free  from  wdre,  are  usually  of  the  post-and-rail  or  "snake" 
varieties,  with  a  few  stone  walls  scattered  throughout  the  country,  the  enclos- 
ures being  small  and  the  jumping  in  some  portions  very  trappy;  so  that  a 
clever,  quiet  jumper  is  found  safer  and  more  useful  than  one  who  flies  his 
fences. 

The  attitude  of  the  landowners  is  marked  by  friendliness,  some  of  the 
farmers  being  regular  members  of  the  Hunt,  and  showing  a  keen  appreciation 
of  the  sport.  The  Millbrook  hunts  both  fox  and  hare,  there  being  a  quan- 
tity of  both  in  the  coverts,  which,  although  fairly  large,  are  not  thick  and  can 
be  ridden  through  in  most  cases.  Some  ten  years  before  the  Hunt  was 
organized  a  number  of  German  hares  were  introduced  by  Mr.  Charles  F. 
Dietrich,  and  these  by  rapid  increase  have  now  become  a  great  nuisance  to 
the  farmers,  who  are  only  too  glad  to  have  them  hunted.  A  drag  is  occa- 
sionally laid  in  the  autumn,  but  Mr.  Marshall  hopes  in  time  to  do  away  wath 
this  form  of  the  sport  entirely. 


92 


The  Millwood  and  Owl's  Nest  Hounds 


MASTERS - N.  I.  Bowdilch  Esq.  and  R.  F.  Perkins.  Esq. 

Frsuningham,  Mass. 

HUNTSMAN _ One  of  the  Masters 

HON.  WHIPPER-IN John  P.  Bowditch.  Esq. 

HOUNDS 1- 1  5  couples,  American 

KENNELS  AND  POST-OFFICE _ Framingham.  Mass. 

DAYS  OF  MEETING - - _ Three  days  a  week 

LENGTH  OF  SEASON - - September  1st  to  March  1st 

BEFORE  the  present  Master  of  the  Middlesex  Foxhounds  was  old 
enough  to  go  to  school,  fox-hunting  in  Middlesex  County,  Massa- 
chusetts, was  firmly  established,  and  although  the  Millwood  and 
Owl's  Nest  Hounds  are  now  little  more  than  a  small  private  pack,  the  Mas- 
ters of  the  Norfolk  and  the  Middlesex  never  hunt  the  Framingham  country 
without  asking  permission  of  Mr.  N.  1.  Bowditch,  to  whom  the  hereditary 
title  of  M.  F.  H.  has  descended. 

As  early  as  1 866,  Mr.  E.  F.  Bowditch  settled  in  Framingham,  and  his 
small  private  pack,  which  was  kenneled  at  "  Millwood,"  his  country-seat,  has 
always  been  kept  up  by  his  sons.  Mr.  Robert  F.  Perkins,  the  Master  of 
the  Owl's  Nest  Hounds,  who,  in  his  college  days,  was  a  frequent  visitor  at 
"  Millwood,"  has  been  kind  enough  to  give  the  authors  some  of  his  recollec- 
tions of  the  early  days,  which  we  feel  are  of  sufficient  interest  to  the  younger 
generation  of  New  England  sportsmen  to  quote  in  full : 

"  TTie  private  pack  of  E.  F.  Bowditch,  Esq.,  has  for  fifteen  years  missed  the 
Master,  who  cared  not  only  for  the  science  of  fox-hunting  but  also  for  the 
splendid  hospitality  that  went  with  it,  the  whole  being  simply  an  incident  in 
the  busy  life  of  a  gentleman  of  means  who  lived  all  the  year  round  on  his 
own  estate  and  who  combined  his  farming  —  which  indeed  embraced  every 
effort  in  that  direction  calculated  to  help  the  farmer — with  the  management 

93 


THE    MILLWOOD    AND    OWL'S    NEST 

of  hospitals  and  other  charitable  organizations.  Mr.  Bowditch  was  always 
in  the  saddle,  winter  and  summer,  at  about  six  o'clock  in  the  morning,  and 
doubtless  the  first  of  the  jumping  began  in  getting  from  one  part  of  the  farm 
to  another  in  his  daily  inspection  of  the  estate.  Many  a  tumble  have  I  seen 
at  these  times  when  larking  green  ones — and  they  were  all  pretty  green  in 
those  days — or  trying  experiments  in  jumping  without  girths  or  stirrups.  It 
was  easy  enough  to  give  up  the  latter,  but  the  combination  usually  stumped 
us,  and  saddle  and  rider  would  find  themselves  together  on  the  ground.  The 
morning  hour  was  the  favorite  one  for  such  things,  and  fox-hunting  came 
naturally  enough;  first,  I  think,  with  hounds  from  the  Myopia — then  a  very 
young  organization  itself — and  later  with  drafts  from  England  and  from 
Canada.  These  gradually  gave  way  to  the  'native'  or  half-bred  animal 
which  is  the  sort  of  hound  kept  at  'Millwood'  today.  At  that  time,  I  be- 
lieve, there  was  no  other  riding  to  hounds  in  New  England,  except  at 
Myopia,  and  there  were  no  particular  traditions  to  follow.  Mr.  Bowditch 
had  never  hunted  in  England  nor  had  he  visited  the  gentlemen  hunting  their 
own  hounds  in  the  south  or  in  the  Genesee  Valley,  so  that  the  details  of 
kennel  management  and  breeding  and  even  fox-hunting  itself,  were  mere  in- 
cidents in  the  general  plan  of  a  pleasant  existence. 

"  Even  so,  many  a  younger  and  lighter  man  found  the  task  of  following  the 
Master,  on  old  '  Pumpkin,'  over  his  country  at  the  tail  of  his  small  and  undis- 
ciplined pack,  none  too  easy.  There  were  plenty  of  foxes  and  little,  if  any, 
wire  in  the  early  days  and  I  verily  believe  that  old  Brown,  the  huntsman, 
knew  personally  every  fox  in  the  country-side;  and  if,  as  was  often  the  case, 
we  lost  the  hounds,  he  would  take  us  either  to  them,  or  to  the  earth,  by  some 
short  cut. 

"Old  Brown  was,  and  still  is,  for  that  matter,  an  Englishman,  and  took  most 
naturally  to  the  sport.  Mounted  on  'Soapsuds,'  a  Roman-nosed  yellow 
beast,  he  negotiated  the  country  in  a  most  marvelous  manner.  It  could  never 
be  said  that  he  was  a  bold  rider  and  it  wouldn't  have  helped  him  if  he  had 
been,  for  'Soapsuds'  flew  nothing,  he  climbed,  and  he  knew  all  the  gaps 
and  short  cuts.  I  can  almost  hear  old  Brown  talking  to  his  horse  and  his 
hounds  now — it  was  all  a  feature  of  the  morning,  and  such  mornings  as  those 

94 


THE    MILLWOOD    AND    OWL'S    NEST 

were — when  we  saw  the  sun  rise  from  the  top  of  Nobscot  Mountain!  Two 
or  three  times  a  week  the  hounds  went  out,  the  Field  consisting  of  the  family 
and  any  friends  who  happened  to  be  on  hand.  Scrambled  eggs  and  coffee 
before  it  was  light,  a  new  horse  to  try  or  an  old  one  to  exercise  —  likely 
enough  a  couple  or  two  of  new  hounds  or  youngsters  —  and  the  duties  of 
town  or  college  seemed  to  have  mighty  little  place  in  the  minds  of  the  party 
that  started  away  from  the  house. 

"One  of  the  events  always  looked  forward  to  and  planned  for  with  much 
pleasure  was  the  visit  of  the  Myopia  hounds  under  the  Mastership  of  Frank 
Seabury,  Esq.  Many  of  the  Myopia  Field,  men  and  women,  came  with 
their  horses  and  servants,  to  be  quartered  either  at  the  little  Inn  in  the  village 
or  to  be  guests  at  '  Millwood.'  Such  evenings  as  we  had  before  the  big  hall 
fireplace,  the  huntsman  coming  for  his  morning  orders,  interrupting  the  stories 
and  music !  Sometimes  there  was  a  supper  followed  by  dancing  to  the 
music  of  two  fiddlers  at  the  old  Wayside  Inn  in  Sudbury  where  of  late  years 
the  Norfolk  and  Middlesex  hounds  have  held  many  a  successful  meet. 
Frank  Codman  was  there  and  Ned  Choate,  '  Marsh '  Abbott  and  George 
Warren  and  his  sister,  and  Murray  Forbes,  Fletcher  Abbott  and  many 
another,  some  of  whom  have  now  gone  on,  although  the  old  Master,  Mr. 
Frank  Seabury,  is  still  in  the  saddle.  If  all  these  recollections  of  those  old 
days  are  neither  useful  nor  scientific  data  on  fox-hunting,  at  least  they  con- 
stitute the  pleasantest  elements  of  the  whole  thing  and  will  be  remembered 
for  many  a  long  year  by  those  of  us  who  enjoyed  them. 

"But  there  was  no  lack  of  hard  riding  at  times  and  although  there  were 
no  scarlet  coats,  except  when  the  Myopia  people  joined  us,  horses  were 
turned  out  in  a  workmanhke  fashion. 

"  There  were  no  Horse  or  Hound  shows  then,  and  no  particular  incentive 
to  correct  appointments,  but  there  certainly  was  fox-hunting  under  the 
pleasantest  conditions." 

After  Mr.  Bowditch's  death,  in  1 892,  the  life  of  the  hunting  went  out  for 

a  time,  though  it  was  gradually  taken  up  again  by  Mr.  N.  I.  Bowditch,  to 

whom  the  hereditary  Mastership  of  the  country  had  descended.    Since  1 895, 

the  hunting  has  been  more  active,  although  lack  of  time  to  devote  to  it  has 

95 


THE    MILLWOOD    AND    OWL'S    NEST 

been  the  reason  for  its  irregularity.  Of  late  years,  there  has  scarcely  been 
a  week  in  the  season  that  either  the  Millwood  Hounds,  now  reinforced  by 
southern  drafts  and  ably  managed  by  Mr.  John  P.  Bowditch  and  his  sister 
Miss  Elizabeth  Bowditch,  or  the  Owl's  Nest  Hounds — Mr.  Perkins'  — 
have  not  been  out.  Sometimes  there  is  a  Field  of  a  dozen,  oftener  only  the 
family  and  a  few  guests ;  but  the  hunting  has  always  prospered  and  always 
will,  in  spite  of  the  hindrance  of  wire,  for  the  farmers  are  used  to  the  family 
and  are  always  glad  to  see  them. 

Mr.  Perkins  is  still  keen  and  always  in  the  saddle  with  his  hounds,  hunt- 
ing them  himself,  and  in  speaking  of  the  sport,  past  and  present,  he  concludes 
as  follows : 

"  Old  Brown  sits  by  his  cottage  door  and  wishes  us  well,  as  we  ride  by 
with  the  grand-children  his  old  Master  never  saw,  and  the  tears  come  into 
the  old  man's  eyes  at  the  memory  of  the  days  that  will  never  come  again." 


% 


.^^UA^*'* 


The  Missouri  Hunt  and  Polo  Club 

DISTINCTIVE  COLLAR - Old  gold 

MASTER St.  Clair  Streett,  M.D. 

SECRETARY - F.  S.  Young,  Esq.,  Kansas  City,  Mo. 

HUNTSMAN L.  N.  Nagill 

WHIPPERS-IN - \  '^'lY;  ,y^-,  <^"^™'^y 

(  2nd,  Hall  Harrison 

HOUNDS  \  ^  couples,  English 

(  8  couples,  American 

KENNELS -. - 5  miles  south  of  Kansas  City,  Mo. 

POST-OFFICE Westport  Station,  Kansas  City,  Mo. 

DAYS   OF  MEETING-  Wednesday  and  Saturday 

LENGTH  OF  SEASON \  ^'^ff  ["/^■'^"T  '?'^ 

(  and  March  1  5  th  to  May  I  5  th 


SHORTLY  after  the  formation  of  the  Onwentsia  Hunt,  near  Chicago, 
a  number  of  gentlemen  of  Kansas  City,  Missouri,  decided  to  form  a 
club  in  that  vicinity  for  the  furtherance  of  hunting  or,  rather,  of  rid- 
ing to  hounds.  As  those  who  have  been  in  the  western  part  of  America 
are  aware,  wire  fencing  is  general,  and  while  the  line  of  the  drag  can  be 
laid  in  such  a  manner  as  to  avoid  this,  it  is  quite  out  of  the  question  to 
hunt  foxes  where  wire  is  as  plentiful  as  it  is  about  Kansas  City.  Drag- 
hunting,  therefore,  has  taken  the  place  of  the  better  sport ;  and  in  a  country 
where  all  the  fences  are  high  enough  and  strong  enough  to  keep  in  stock,  no 
one  can  say  that  the  Missourians  have  chosen  a  child's  game. 

Except  for  the  superabundance  of  wire,  the  founders  of  the  club  had 
everything  in  their  favor,  many  residents  of  Kansas  City  bemg  found  who 
were  only  too  glad  to  join  in  the  project. 

In  1902,  then,  the  Missouri  Hunt  and  Polo  Club  was  duly  incorporated 
under  the  laws  of  the  State  of  Missouri,  and  in  the  autumn  Mr.  S.  H.  Velie, 

97 


THE    MISSOURI 

Jr.,  was  elected  Master,  and  began  hunting  with  a  draft  of  hounds  procured 
from  the  Toronto.  The  sport  proved  very  popular,  and  in  1 903  found  a 
greater  following,  Mr.  Velie  continuing  in  office  during  1903  and  1904, 
when  the  present  Master,  Dr.  St.  Clair  Streett,  was  elected.  Various  addi- 
tions to  the  pack  have  been  made,  some  hounds  having  been  procured  from 
the  London  Hunt,  of  London,  Ontario,  and  the  Middlesex  Foxhounds,  of 
South  Lincoln,  Mass.,  as  well  as  some  American  hounds  which  were  drafted 
from  the  Radnor  Hunt.  The  present  Master  has  some  fourteen  couples  in 
the  kennels,  about  equally  divided  between  American  and  English,  and  he 
is  breeding  the  American  dogs  to  the  English  bitches,  vnth  a  view  to  getting 
a  fast  draghound  v«th  the  steadiness  and  reliability  of  the  English  hound, 
and  especially  the  babbling  ability  of  his  American  cousin.  So  much  for  the 
pack.  As  for  the  mounts,  it  may  be  remarked  that  Kansas  City  can  boast 
a  very  fine  lot  of  hunters.  Dr.  Streett's  own  string,  three  of  which  are  shown 
in  one  of  the  illustrations  to  this  article,  are  all  of  them  clean-breds,  or  very 
nearly  so,  and  as  the  Master  has  the  reputation  of  gomg  hard,  it  goes  with- 
out saying  that  they  can  jump  and  gallop. 

The  country,  as  has  been  said,  is  cursed  with  v/ire,  but  except  for  that  it 
is  almost  ideal  from  a  drag-hunting  pomt  of  view.  It  is  rollmg  in  places,  with 
a  fair  amount  of  open  woodland,  and  there  are  great  stretches  of  grassland 
and  pasture  enclosed  with  high,  strong  fences.  Nothing  but  a  big-jumping, 
clean-bred  horse  can  live  behind  a  fast  pack  in  such  a  country  as  this,  and 
that  is  the  kind  of  animal  in  general  use.  Dr.  Streett,  acting  for  the  Club, 
has  taken  great  pains  to  make  friends  with  the  landowners  in  the  country,  and 
the  result  is  very  gratifying.  Each  year  the  Club  gives  a  luncheon  to  the 
farmers  of  the  vicinity,  and  always  welcomes  them  to  its  Field  Day  and  polo 
matches.  Many  of  the  landowners  are  members  of  the  Hunt,  and  the  Mas- 
ter is  always  glad  to  see  them  in  the  Field  behind  the  hounds.  During  the 
last  year  Dr.  Streett's  efforts  in  this  direction  have  met  with  such  success  that 
the  Hunt  has  now  an  area  over  which  to  ride  more  than  five  times  as  large 
as  in  the  years  of  its  infancy. 

The  Club  maintains  its  own  stables,  kennels,  schooling  ground  and  polo 
field  at  Westport  Station,  some  five  miles  south  of  Kansas  City,  and  from 

98 


THE    MISSOURI 

October  I  st  to  January  1 0th,  and  again  for  two  months  from  March  I  5th, 
in  the  spring,  the  hunting  is  in  full  swing.  In  time  it  is  hoped  that  arrange- 
ments can  be  made  with  the  landowners  to  put  panels  of  rails  in  the  wire 
fences,  and  thus  eventually  do  away  with  the  barrier  to  fox-hunting.  Foxes 
are  plentiful,  and  it  seems  a  pity  not  to  make  the  best  of  a  very  good  op- 
portunity ;  by  far  the  best  in  the  western  states. 


99 


The  Monmouth  County  Hunt 


DISTINCTIVE  COLLAR - Claret  color 

EVENING  DRESS Scarlet  coat,  claret  colored  facings 

MASTER  Robert  J.  Collier,  Esq.,  Eatontown,  N.  J. 

HUNTSMAN John  Fitzpatrick 

^j-jjpp£p^ljSj  S   1  St,  Nicholas  Van  Winkle 

(  2nd,  Harvey  Bemis 

HOUNDS  ^  ^^  couples,  English 

(25  couples,  American 

KENNELS  AND  POST-OFFICE Eatontown,  N.  J. 

p.  A  ye /-\p  ivyipp-riKip  ^  Draghounds,  Monday,  Thursday  and  Saturday 

(  Foxhounds,  Tuesday,  Wednesday  and  Friday 

LENGTH  OF  SEASON \  0*^|tf  1"/°  ^T"^.  If. 

(  and  March  1st  to  Apr  J  25  th 


MR.  P.  F.  COLLIER,  who  has  always  been  identified  with 
cross-country  sport  in  this  country,  started,  in  the  year  1 89 1 ,  a 
pack  of  hounds  of  his  own,  building  suitable  kennels  on  his  es- 
tate at  Eatontown,  New  Jersey.  Mr.  Collier,  who  is  an  Irishman  by  birth, 
is  in  the  habit  of  going  every  year  to  his  mother  country  for  part  of  the  hunt- 
ing season;  in  fact  the  jovial  face  of  the  Master  of  the  Monmouth  County 
is  almost  as  well-known  with  the  Meath  as  it  is  in  his  own  country.  What 
more  natural,  then,  than  that  he  should  import  considerable  drafts  of  hounds 
from  time  to  time,  and  that  these  importations  should  come  mainly  from  the 
Meath,  whose  Master,  Mr.  John  Watson,  is  an  intimate  friend  of  his? 

Few  men  are  better  qualified  to  give  advice  on  the  subject  of  hound-man- 
agement than  Mr.  Watson,  who  has  had  the  practical  control  of  the  Meath 
pack  for  more  than  forty  years,  hunting  the  hounds  himself  during  most  of 
that  period,  and  Mr.  Collier  is  lucky  in  having  so  able  a  mentor.  Mr. 
Collier's  horses,  too,  come  from  the  Meath  country,  and  when  one  sees  the 

100 


ln^ 


•*H 


THE    MONMOUTH    COUNTY 

manner  in  which  he  turns  out  his  Hunt  Staff,  it  is  difficult  to  find  fault  with 
their  selection. 

The  Monmouth  County  country,  which  lies  about  Eatontown  and  Red 
Bank,  New  Jersey,  is  very  well  suited  to  drag-hunting,  which  is  the  manner 
in  which  the  sport  was  first  followed.  Finding  that  the  climate  of  Monmouth 
County  was  unsuited  to  a  long  season,  the  Master  took  his  hounds  to  Chevy 
Chase,  Maryland,  in  1 894,  for  part  of  the  winter  season,  and  there  took  alter- 
nate days  with  the  Chevy  Chase,  hunting  about  Washington  late  into  the  year. 

Drag-hunting  in  Monmouth  County  was  never  given  up ;  but  this  being  a 
private  pack,  Mr.  Collier  has  been  accustomed  to  take  his  hounds  at  certain 
times  of  the  year  to  outside  countries,  and  in  1 900  they  went  to  Newport 
for  a  season  of  about  six  weeks.  There  are  no  hounds  near  Newport,  and 
as  the  summer  residents  of  that  well-known  watering-place  have  been  enthu- 
siastic in  their  support  of  Mr.  Collier's  pack,  the  fields  turning  out  in  pretty 
considerable  numbers  for  the  six  weeks  early  in  the  season  in  which  he  has 
had  them  there,  he  has  continued  to  make  this  a  yearly  practice. 

In  1 904,  when  Mr.  Foxhall  Keene  resigned  the  Mastership  of  the  Meadow 
Brook  Hunt,  Mr.  Collier  was  elected  to  take  his  place,  and  feeling  that  he 
could  hardly  shoulder  the  responsibility  of  two  packs  of  hounds,  his  son,  Mr. 
Robert  J.  Collier,  undertook  the  management  of  the  home  pack,  and  has 
handled  it  with  great  success. 

Mr.  Collier  has  now  resigned  Mastership  at  Meadow  Brook,  and  will  prob- 
ably, in  the  future,  spend  most  of  his  time  with  his  own  hounds.  In  1 904  he 
received  from  Mr.  Norman  Harris  of  Louisville,  Kentucky,  a  present  of  four 
couples  of  American  hounds,  and  these,  together  with  drafts  from  the  kennels 
of  Mr.  Walker  and  Mr.  Trigg  in  the  south,  have  formed  the  nucleus  of  his 
American  pack,  he  being  of  the  opinion  that  in  his  country  American  hounds 
can  show  better  sport  after  foxes  than  their  English  cousins. 

The  country  over  which  the  Monmouth  County  hounds  hunt  is  larger  and 
better  than  any  about  New  York ;  and  having  always  been  hunted,  not  by 
a  club,  but  by  a  private  pack,  the  landowners  are  somewhat  easier  to  deal 
v«th,  as,  of  course,  a  Master  who  is  responsible  to  no  one,  and  who  has  al- 
ways lived  in  the  country,  can  be  on  the  most  cordial  terms  with  the  farmers. 

101 


THE    MONMOUTH    COUNTY 

As  to  the  character  of  the  country, — there  are  a  great  many  ditches  and 
big  post-and-rail  fences,  —  and  Mr.  Collier  states  that  he  considers  that  Irish 
horses  are  better  suited  to  it  than  any  other  type.  He  maintains  a  very  large 
stable  himself,  and  is  always  glad  to  give  a  mount  to  visiting  sportsmen,  while 
there  is  an  excellent  livery  stable  at  Red  Bank,  N.  J.,  where  men  who  come 
down  for  the  hunting  season  can  put  up  mounts.  There  are  also  several 
jobbing  stables  nearby,  so  that  a  man  washing  to  run  down  from  New  York, 
only  twenty-five  miles  away,  for  a  day's  hunting,  can  easily  be  accommodated. 

Most  of  the  meets  are  held  between  Matteawan  and  Freehold,  both  of 
which  places  are  within  an  hour's  ride  of  the  city  of  New  York. 


102 


la 


The  Montreal  Hunt 


DISTINCTIVE  UNIFORM  Scarlet  coat,  dark  blue  collar,  facings  and  piping 

(  For  Hunt  Servants) 

EVENING  DRESS Scarlet  coat,  dark  blue  collar  and  facings 

MASTER - A.  E.  Ogilvie.  Esq. 

HON.  SECRETARY AUan  G.  Law.  Esq.,  Montreal.  P.  Q.,  Canada 

HUNTSMAN - Will  NichoUs 

WHIPPER-IN Fred  NichoUs 

HOUNDS 40  couples.  English 

KENNELS Cate  de  Neige,  Montreal,  P.  Q..  Canada 

POST-OFFICE Montreal,  P.  Q..  Canad; 

DAYS  OF  MEETING Tuesday,  Thursday  and  Saturday 

LENGTH  OF  SEASON August  15th  to  December  1st 


WHILE  the  Montreal  Hunt,  founded  in  1 826,  is  not  in  one  sense 
the  oldest  organization  of  its  kind  on  the  continent,  its  founda- 
tion being  antedated  by  that  of  the  Brooklyn  Hunt  and  of  the 
Gloucester  Fox  Hunting  Club,  yet  it  is  the  only  one  in  America  which  can 
show  a  continuous  record  under  practically  the  same  management  for  eighty- 
two  years.  It  stands,  today,  at  the  head  of  all  the  Hunts  in  America,  and 
there  is  scarcely  a  hunting  man,  English,  French  or  American,  who  does  not 
acknowledge  its  supremacy. 

Unfortunately  a  complete  record  of  its  history  is  lacking,  partly  owing  to 
the  destruction  by  fire  of  the  early  papers.  Thanks  for  much  of  the  follow- 
ing information  is  due  to  Dr.  Charles  McEachran,  who  during  his  Master- 
ship collected  from  all  available  sources  the  records  now  in  existence. 

In  1826,  Mr.  William  Forsyth  removed  a  pack  of  English  foxhounds 
from  Three  Rivers  to  Montreal,  the  kennels  at  that  time  being  situated  op- 
posite Logan's  farm.     In  those  days  there  was  comparatively  little  hunting 

103 


THE  MONTREAL 

on  the  Island  of  Montreal.  The  vulpine  family  seemed  indigenous  to  the 
south  side  of  the  river,  and  the  result  was  that  the  majority  of  runs  were  in 
the  region  of  Laprairie  and  Chambly.  Mr.  John  Forsyth,  son  of  the  founder 
of  the  Hunt,  became  Master  in  1 834,  and  proved  to  be  a  chip  of  the  old 
block;  a  thorough  sportsman  and  a  hard  rider.  He  remained  in  office  for 
three  seasons. 

In  1 837,  Capt.  Walter  Jones  of  the  Queen's  Light  Dragoons  succeeded 
him,  filling  the  position  of  Master  with  honor  for  two  years;  after  which 
Capt.  T.  J.  Stockley,  Sr.,  R.  A.,  carried  the  horn  until  1 842.  It  was  about 
this  time  that  the  regular  Hunt  Steeplechases  were  inaugurated,  and  cups 
valued  all  the  way  from  five  hundred  to  seven  hundred  and  fifty  dollars  were 
the  trophies  competed  for. 

In  1 842,  the  Mastership  was  assumed  by  T.  J.  Stockley,  Jr.,  R.  A.,  son 
of  the  former  M.  F.  H.  His  term  of  office  was  two  years,  at  the  end  of 
which  time  he  was  succeeded  by  Captain,  The  Honorable  H.  Fane  Keane, 
R.  E.  Difficulties  began  to  arise,  especially  of  a  financial  nature,  after  the 
Captain  had  held  the  pack  together  for  three  years,  and  force  of  circum- 
stances necessitated  its  sale  to  Mr.  Hubert  and  some  sporting  friends  in 
Cobourg.  For  the  next  three  years  Montreal  was  without  a  pack  of  hounds, 
but  in  1 85 1  Mr.  Hubert  went  home  to  the  "  old  country,"  and  the  pack  was 
sold  again  to  some  enthusiasts  in  Montreal,  who  elected  Lieutenant  Charles 
Lutyens  of  the  20th  Regiment  (afterwards  a  world-renowned  animal  painter) 
as  Master.  Some  of  his  pictures  are  owned  in  Montreal,  and  a  very  fine 
hunting  scene,  "Killed  in  the  Fog,"  is  still  in  the  possession  of  the  family  of 
the  late  Donald  Lorn  Macdougall,  Esq.  In  1 852,  Lieutenant  Lutyens  was 
succeeded  by  Lieutenant  J.  Ponsonby  Cox,  R.  E.,  who  held  the  Master- 
ship until  1 854,  when  he  was  called  upon  to  serve  his  country  in  the  Crimea. 

The  withdrawal  of  the  military  influence  from  the  Hunt  at  this  time  was 
not  conducive  to  its  welfare,  but  seldom  does  necessity  fail  to  produce  the 
man,  and  in  this  particular  dilemma  it  was  Mr.  Donald  Lorn  Macdougall  who 
filled  the  breach,  and  assumed  for  six  years  almost  the  entire  expense  of  the 
Hunt.  In  1 859,  the  kennels  were  removed  to  the  corner  of  St.  Joseph  and 
Guy  Streets,  and  Mr.  AUoway  became  Acting  Master  and  Huntsman,  thus 

104 


THE    MONTREAL 

relieving  Mr.  Macdougall  of  many  of  his  arduous  duties  in  the  field.  Ken- 
nedy, the  huntsman,  had  grown  too  old,  and  during  this  period  Drysdale 
acted  as  whipper-in  to  Mr.  Macdougall  and  Mr.  Alloway,  the  latter  hunting 
the  hounds  until  1 860.  Mr.  D.  A.  Bellhouse  and  Major  J.  T.  D.  Bourke 
were  elected  to  the  Mastership  in  rapid  succession ;  neither  of  them  remain- 
ing long  in  office ;  and  in  1 862,  Captain  Francis  De  Winton,  R.  A.,  was 
elected  Master,  holding  the  position  until  1864.  After  that  no  regular 
Master  was  appointed  for  a  time,  and  the  affairs  of  the  Hunt  were  left  in 
the  hands  of  a  committee,  of  which  Mr.  W.  M.  Ramsay  was  chairman,  the 
other  members  being  Captain  Money,  Mr.  Thomas  Davidson,  and  Mr. 
William  Cunningham. 

In  1 867,  however,  the  Hunt  was  happy  in  the  choice  of  a  Master,  for  in 
November  of  that  year  Mr.  John  Crawford  was  elected  for  the  first  time. 
To  anyone  at  all  acquainted  with  the  Hunt,  a  description  of  that  typical 
old  sportsman  would  seem  superfluous,  for  he  was  in  his  time  a  living,  breath- 
ing example  of  what  riding  can  do  in  the  way  of  preserving  healthy  vitality 
long  after  the  span  of  three  score  years  and  ten  has  been  passed.  (Mr. 
Crawford  died  in  April,  1903,  at  the  age  of  ninety,  having  followed  the 
hounds  within  two  years  of  his  death.)  He  filled  the  position  for  six  years, 
and  during  that  time  the  Mastership  was  no  sinecure.  There  were  many 
difficulties  to  be  overcome,  and  they  were  overcome,  for  Mr.  Crawford  had 
administrative  talents,  as  well  as  being  a  straight  rider  and  a  sportsman  to 
the  core.  The  stiffest  obstacles  in  the  Pointe  Claire  country  had  no  terrors 
for  him ;  neither  had  any  of  the  other  impediments  that  the  Mastership  of  a 
Hunt  involves.     He  was  equal  to  them  all. 

Mr.  Andrew  Allan  was  unanimously  elected  Master  in  1 874,  and  was 
assisted  by  a  hard  working  committee,  so  that,  although  not  doing  much  cross- 
country work  himself,  his  resignation  in  1876  was  regretted  by  everyone. 
During  his  Mastership  he  was  well  represented  in  the  field  by  his  two  sons. 
Jack  and  Hugh  Allan,  the  latter  becoming  later  the  first  Master  of  the 
Myopia  Hunt  in  Essex  County,  Massachusetts. 

Following  him,  Mr.  Crawford  accepted  the  Mastership  for  the  second 
time,  retaining  command  for  two  years,  being  followed  by  Mr.  J.  R.  Hutchins 

105 


THE    MONTREAL 

for  one  year ;  and  then,  in  1 879,  by  Captain  E.  A.  C.  Campbell  of  St. 
Hillaire,  an  officer  of  the  92nd  Highlanders.  Captain  Campbell  had  great 
ambitions,  and  during  his  Mastership  tried  his  best  to  raise  the  standard  of 
the  Hunt  so  that  it  might  compare  favorably,  not  only  with  the  other  Hunts 
in  America,  but  also  with  those  m  England.  Mr.  A.  Baumgarten,  who  suc- 
ceeded him  in  1 882,  continued  to  work  along  the  same  lines,  and  when  he 
finally  resigned,  in  1 887,  the  Hunt  was  in  much  better  shape  than  ever  be- 
fore. Mr.  Hugh  Paton  assumed  the  Mastership  on  the  retirement  of  Mr. 
Baumgarten,  and  although  this  was  his  first  term  as  Master,  still,  as  far  back 
as  1 870,  he  had  done  duty  in  the  position  of  Honorary  Secretary  and  Treas- 
urer. 

in  1 888,  there  was  difficulty  m  getting  anyone  to  accept  the  responsibility 
of  the  office  wfiich  Mr.  Paton  found  it  impossible  to  retain,  owing  to  his 
business ;  and  it  was  only  after  much  solicitation  that  Mr.  Crawford  again 
consented  to  act.  On  February  3rd,  1888,  Mr.  Crawford  informed  the 
club  that  he  was  willing  to  undertake  the  duties  of  Master,  but  would  only 
do  so  under  the  express  condition  that  the  hunt  committee  promise  to  work 
energetically.  "1  am  too  old,"  the  Squire  said,  "to  be  expected  to  look  after 
the  hounds  and  do  all  the  hard  work  that  a  Master  should.  You  must  take 
that  off  my  shoulders,  and  I  will  do  everything  I  can  to  further  the  interests 
of  the  Hunt ;  but  I  cannot,  at  my  time  of  life,  be  expected  to  hunt  three 
days  a  week  regularly  through  the  season." 

Mr.  Crawford  continued  as  Master  until  1891,  resigning  at  the  age  of 
seventy-eight,  when  Sir  H.  Montagu  Allan  was  unanimously  elected.  He 
held  the  position  for  five  years,  and  during  his  term  of  office  much  was  done 
to  preserve  the  foxes  in  the  district,  and  the  Hunt  owes  much  of  the  present 
excellent  condition  of  its  country  to  him. 

On  fiis  resignation,  in  1 896,  Mr.  George  R.  Hooper  was  elected,  holding 
office  for  five  years ;  and  it  was  during  his  regime  that  the  kennels  were  re- 
moved from  Delormier  Avenue  to  the  land  at  Cote  de  Neige,  where  they 
now  stand. 

On  his  resignation,  in  1 90 1 ,  Dr.  Charles  McEachran  was  elected,  and  a 
more  happy  selection  than  the  genial  Scotchman  it  would  have  been  hard  to 

106 


THE    MONTREAL 

find.  "  Doctor  Charley,"  who  has  been  at  the  game  all  his  days,  began  his 
hunting  in  Scotland,  and  has  been  a  warm  supporter  of  the  Montreal  Hunt 
ever  since  commg  to  Canada.  His  official  position  as  Government  Inspector 
has  brought  him  into  close  touch  wath  many  of  the  landowners,  and  he  was 
a  very  popular  Master  with  them  as  well  as  with  his  Field.  His  knowl- 
edge of  hounds  and  hunting  is  universally  admitted,  and  it  was  his  experi- 
ence in  these  matters  that  led  to  his  election  as  one  of  the  judges  of  the 
English-American  foxhound  match  which  took  place  in  the  Piedmont  Val- 
ley of  Virginia  in  1905,  where  the  genial  Doctor  made  himself  as  popular 
wath  the  Virginians  as  he  was  with  his  Field  at  home.  At  the  end  of  five 
years  he  resigned,  and  Mr.  W.  R.  Miller  was  elected  in  his  place. 
While  a  horseman  rather  than  a  hound  man,  to  begin  with,  Mr.  Miller 
quickly  caught  the  hound  fever,  and  in  1906,  when  the  first  National 
Hound  Show  was  held  at  South  Lincoln,  Massachusetts,  was  very  strong  in 
his  support  of  it,  bringing  a  large  entry  to  the  show  and  using  all  his  influ- 
ence to  make  it  the  success  which  it  proved.  Unfortunately  he  found 
that  the  Mastership  took  too  much  of  his  time,  and  in  1 907  he  resigned, 
his  office  being  filled  by  the  present  Master,  A.  E.  Ogilvie,  Esq.,  who 
had  been  his  right-hand  man  as  Honorary  Secretary  of  the  Hunt  through- 
out his  Mastership. 

Mr.  Ogilvie  is  in  dead  earnest,  and  while  he  was  unable  to  show  any 
hounds  at  the  National  Hound  Show  in  1 908,  he  was  a  large  purchaser  at 
the  Rugby  hound  sale  in  England,  securing  some  hounds,  through  the  kind 
offices  of  Mr.  T.  Butt  Miller,  M.  F.  H.,  from  the  Atherstone  and  the 
Meynell.  With  plenty  of  time  to  devote  to  the  pack  and  the  best  of  blood 
to  breed  from,  the  next  few  years  under  Mr.  Ogilvie's  regime  should  show  a 
marked  improvement  in  its  quality. 

The  Montreal  has  been  very  lucky  in  having  but  few  changes  of  hunts- 
men during  its  long  period  of  existence,  thus  insuring  very  little  change  in  its 
policy  of  hound-breeding.  The  first  huntsman  was  Outhet,  who  was  suc- 
ceeded by  Morris,  who  in  his  turn  was  followed  by  Kennedy ;  the  latter 
finally  resigning  in  1 859,  when  William  Drysdale  acted  as  kennel  huntsman 
and  whipper-in  to  Mr.  AUoway,  the  then  acting  M.  F.  H.     Mr.  Alloway 

107 


THE  MONTREAL 

hunted  the  hounds  himself  until  1 866,  when  Drysdale  was  made  huntsman, 
which  place  he  filled  with  honor  until  1 899.  Thus  it  will  be  seen  that  from 
1 859  until  the  present  date,  a  period  of  almost  fifty  years,  there  have  been 
but  two  huntsmen. 

On  the  retirement  of  Drysdale  in  1 890,  a  new  period  of  activity  began. 
Will  Nicholls  was  sent  to  Montreal  by  Edward  Cotesworth,  at  that  time 
huntsman  to  the  Linlithgow  and  Stirlingshire  hounds  in  Scotland.  Nicholls 
had  been  under  the  tutelage  of  Cotesworth  as  first  whipper-in,  and  when 
the  latter  was  asked  by  the  Montreal  Master  as  to  Nicholls'  qualifications 
to  take  charge  of  the  Canadian  pack,  he  was  able  to  reply  most  favor- 
ably, and  Nicholls  has  proved  a  very  successful  choice.  Young,  active, 
enthusiastic,  an  excellent  horseman  and  a  keen  lover  of  sport,  he  has 
made  himself  a  part  of  the  Hunt,  and  it  v«ll  be  a  sorry  day  indeed  for  the 
Montreal  when  he  retires.  In  the  eighteen  years  he  has  held  his  posi- 
tion, he  has  been  unflagging  in  his  efforts  to  improve  his  hounds,  and  the 
pack  has  to-day  no  supenors  and  but  few  equals  in  the  field,  while  on  the 
flags  they  stand  in  the  front  rank.  During  the  first  part  of  Nicholls'  ser- 
vice, most  of  the  drafts  procured  from  abroad  came  from  the  Linlithgow  and 
Stirlingshire,  while  the  Croome,  Old  Berkshire  and  Lord  Eglmton's  blood 
played  a  conspicuous  part.  Of  late  years  Mr.  Butt  Miller,  M.  F.  H.  of 
one  of  the  Vale  of  White  Horse  packs,  has  taken  a  great  interest  in  the 
Montreal,  and  has  from  time  to  time  sent  them  valuable  additions  from  his 
own  and  other  kennels,  as  well  as  acting  as  their  representative  at  Rugby 
hound  sales. 

Nicholls  has  been  successful  in  breeding,  and  the  Montreal  entries  are 
always  of  very  high  quality.  His  old  mentor,  —  now  with  the  Middlesex, 
—  and  he,  have  many  a  friendly  tussle  on  the  flags  of  the  National  Hound 
Show ;  and  honors  are  about  even.  In  the  field,  he  is  an  excellent  hunts- 
man, his  hounds  being  under  perfect  control,  and  working  for  him  and  with 
him  as  good  hounds  should.  Foxes  are  plenty  in  the  Montreal  country, 
and  are  well  looked  after,  and  it  is  very  seldom  that  a  fox  is  not  accounted 
for  in  one  way  or  another. 

The  country  hunted  consists  of  the  Island  of  Montreal  and  the  adjacent 

108 


THE    MONTREAL 

Isles  of  Jesu  and  Bizard,  and  the  mainland  north ;  about  thirty-seven  miles  east 
to  west  and  thirty-four  miles  north  to  south.  The  fences  vary  with  the  character 
of  the  country;  easily  negotiated  stone  walls  in  the  smooth  pastures  of  the  St. 
Anne's  district,  post-and-rails  on  Isle  of  Jesu,  and  in  the  north  the  same 
kind  of  a  fence  with  a  wide  ditch.  A  clever  horse  that  can  jump  and  stay 
is  required. 

One  of  the  authors  remembers  a  very  good  day's  hunting  with  the  Mont- 
real, during  the  season  of  1 906,  in  their  Pointe  Claire  country.  The  country 
itself  was  all  that  could  be  desired, —  small  coverts  with  a  good  expanse  of 
open  going,  over  which  hounds  took  the  Field  at  a  rattling  pace  when  once 
they  had  forced  their  fox  out  of  cover, — beautiful  galloping,  with  nice,  clean 
rail  fences,  interrupted  occasionally  by  a  stone  wall,  until  they  finally  put 
him  to  ground  under  a  pile  of  old  rails,  after  a  fast  burst  of  thirty  minutes ; 
and  then  another  covert  drawn  and  a  second  fox  found  and  run  until  dark- 
ness made  it  necessary  to  take  hounds  back  to  the  waiting  train  and  so  to 
Montreal.  Like  this  Pointe  Claire  country,  many  of  the  best  districts  are 
reached  by  rail,  and  it  is  a  weekly  occurrence  with  the  Montreal  to  "  train  " 
to  meets. 

During  recents  years  the  increasing  use  of  wire  fencing  has  made  it 
necessary  to  contrive  some  regular  method  of  dealing  with  the  evil,  and 
there  is  now  a  wire  fund,  maintained  by  private  subscription  and  kept  sep- 
arate from  the  accounts  of  the  Hunt,  which  is  expended  solely  for  putting 
long  timber  panels  in  the  wire  fences  in  all  parts  of  the  country.  The 
kennels,  hunt  stables  and  clubhouse  are  situated  at  Cote  de  Neige,  a  little 
suburb  of  Montreal  about  six  miles  from  the  heart  of  the  city,  and  while  the 
nearest  meet  is  about  eight  miles  from  the  kennels,  at  Cartierville,  their  situa- 
tion is  such  that  it  is  very  easy  to  "  train  "  to  meets  in  all  parts  of  the  island 
of  Montreal,  and  at  times  beyond  its  confines.  The  clubhouse  is  most 
charmingly  situated,  overlooking  the  flat  plain  which  lies  toward  Cartierville 
on  the  north  side  of  the  mountain  from  which  the  city  of  Montreal  takes  its 
name.  Here  it  is  that  the  members  meet  to  talk  over  the  day's  sport,  or  in 
the  venter  to  sit  about  the  fire  and  discuss  the  good  times  of  the  past  season. 

Among  the  regular  followers  in  the  Field  there  have  always  been  a  good 

109 


THE    MONTREAL 


many  men  interested  in  horse-breeding  and  in  steeplechasing,  and  the  Hunt 
has  had  its  regular  race  meeting  every  autumn  since  1837  ;  when  the  Mont- 
real Hunt  Cup,  a  steeplechase  of  three  miles,  has  been  the  feature  of  these 
annual  meetings.  Up  to  1 907,  this  race  was  for  horses  owned  and  hunted 
regularly  by  members  of  the  Montreal  Hunt,  but  at  that  time  it  was  decided 
to  extend  these  conditions,  and  horses  holding  qualified  hunter's  certificates 
from  the  Canadian  Hunt  Association  or  the  National  Steeplechase  and 
Hunt  Association,  ridden  by  gentlemen  riders  holding  licenses  from  one  of 
the  above  associations,  are  now  eligible.  As  this  is  probably  the  oldest 
hunter's  steeplechase  in  America,  we  give  below  a  list  of  the  winners  since 
1 855,  the  records  before  that  year  having  been  lost  by  fire. 

Year  OwTier 

1855  Mr.  H.  Hogan's  ch.g. 

1856  Capt.  Elwes's  ch.m. 

1857  No  race 

1858  Mr.  Mahiot's  ch.g. 

1859  Mr.  C.  F.  Elwes's  ch.m. 

1 860  Capt.  Treheme's  b.m. 

1861  Dr.  Kirvin's  b.g. 

1 862  Capt.  de  Winton's  b.g. 

1863  M.H.  Hogan's 

1864  Mr.  D.  L.  MacDougall's 

1 865  Mr.  Thomas  Davidson's 

1 866  No  race 

1867  No  race 

1868  No  race 

1869  Mr.  A.  Torrance's  ch.m. 

1870  Mr.  H.  MacDougall's  ch.g. 

1871  Mr.  Andrew  Allan's  ch.m. 

1 872  Mr.  D.  J.  Bannatyne's  ch.h. 

1873  Mr.  Andrew  Allan's  ch.h. 

1874  Dr.  W.  H.  Hingston's  ch.g. 

1 875  Mr.  Andrew  Allan's  ch.h. 

1876  Major  Hcindyside's  b.h. 

1877  Montreal  Hunt's  b.g. 

1878  Mr.  Jas.  O'Brien's  ch.g. 


Horse 

Rider 

Broker 

Mr.  H.  S.  MacDougall 

Brunette 

Owner 

Royal 

Mr.  Harry  W.  Alloway 

Brunette 

Owner 

Fireaway 

Mr.  Harry  W.  Alloway 

Montcalm 

Capt.  Parker 

Fearaway 

Capt.  C.  White 

Wild  Irishman 

Capt.  Elwes 

Valpciraiso 

Mr.  Harry  W.  Alloway 

The  Squire 

Mr.  Hany  W.  Alloway 

Hopehil 

Mr.  C.  J.  Alloway 

Woodstock 

Mr.  C.  J.  Alloway 

Primrose 

Mr.  C.  J.  Alloway 

Milesciin 

Owner 

Tradewind 

Mr.  C.  J.  Alloway 

Bibakiba 

Mr.  F.  L.  Hart 

Astronomer 

Mr.  C.  J.  Alloway 

Moonstone 

Mr.  J.  Alex.  Gordon 

Fusillier 

Mr.  J.  Alex.  Gordon 

Pilot 

Mr.  S.  Penniston 

no 

THE  MONTREAL 


Year  Owner  Horse 

1879  Mr.  C.  J.  Alloway's  ch.h.  Jack  Frost 

1 880  Mr.  J.  E.  MuUin's  b.h.  Moonstone 

1 88 1  Mr.  J.  P.  Dawes'  ch.m.  Rose 

1 882  Mr.  Alex.  Esdaile's  gr.g.  Little  Jack 

1 883  Mr.  S.  Penniston's  ch.g.  Pilot 

1 884  Mr.  A.  E.  Penniston's  ch.m.  Madeline 

1 885  Mr.  F.  H.  Penniston's  ch.m.  Ivy 

1 886  Mr.  H.  Drysdale's  ch.g.  Echo 

1887  Dr.  R.  Craik's  ch.m.  Wishimay 

1888  Mr.  H.  Drysdale's  ch.g.  Echo 

1 889  Mr.  H.  Drysdale's  ch.g.  Slickaway 

1 890  Mr.  E.  J.  Major's  br.g.  Hardtimes 
1 89  i  Mr.  E.  J.  Major's  br.g.  Slickaway 

1 892  Mr.  Colin  Campbell's  b.g.  Lancer 

1 893  Mr.  H.  Montagu  Allan's  br.g.  Mamwood 
I  894  Mr.  Wm.  Hendrie,  Jr's  br.g.  Royal  Rob 

1895  Mr.  Wm.  Hendrie  Jr.'s  br.g.  Royal  Rob 

1 896  Mr.  F.  Beardmore's  b.g.  Laddie 

1897  Dr.  Chas.  McEachran's  ch.m.  Magic 

1 898  Mr.  J.  H.  Smith's  ch.g.  The  Squire 

1899  Dr.  Chas.  McEachran's  ch.g  The  Pal 

1900  Mr.  Colin  Campbell's  br.g.  Jim  Lisle 

1901  Mr.  J.  C.  Watson's  ch.m.  Round  View 

1902  Mr.  J.  C.  Watson's  ch.m.  Round  View 

1903  Mr.  H.  H.  Learmont's  b.g. 

1904  Mr.  H.  H.  Learmont's  b.g. 

1 905  Mr.  E.  de  B.  Strathy's  b.g. 

1906  Mr.  H.  H.  Learmont's  b.g. 
1907 


Rider 
Owner 

Mr.  J.  Alex.  L.  Strathy 
Mr.  J.  Alex.  L.  Strathy 
Mr.  S.  Penniston 
Owner 

Mr.  C.  W.  Penniston 
Mr.  C.  W.  Penniston 
Mr.  J.  Alex  L.  Strathy 
Mr.  F.  EUiott 
Mr.  F.  Elliott 
Mr.  F.  Elliott 
Owner 
Owner 
Owner 

Mr.  L.  Mel.  Speckman 
Mr.  Colin  Campbell 
Mr.  Colin  Ceunpbell 
Owner 

Mr.  H.  G.  Johnston 
Owner 

Mr.  H.  G.  Johnston 
Owner 
Mr.  Murray  Hendrix 


Owner 
Bob  McGregor    Mr.  John  Sector 
Bob  McGregor    Mr.  John  Sector 
Burnap  Owner 

Bob  McGregor    Mr.  E  de  B.  Strathy 
Mr.  A.  Henry  Higginson's  blk.g.  Owaissa  Mr.  J.  C.  Watson 

The  race  for  this  Hunt  Cup  was  held  for  a  long  time  over  a  natural 
course  laid  out  on  the  farms  of  one  or  another  of  the  Hunt  members,  but  in 
1906,  the  meeting  was  held  for  the  first  time  on  the  new  course  of  the 
Montreal  Jockey  Club  at  Blue  Bonnets,  some  eight  miles  outside  of  the 
city,  where  it  is  now  an  annual  event.  The  racing  spirit  has  been  fostered 
in  the  Province  of  Quebec  mainly  by  the  Hunt  members,  and  the  newly 
formed  Montreal  Jockey  Club  has  for  its  President  an  ex-Master,  Sir  H. 

Ill 


THE    MONTREAL 

Montagu  Allan,  while  its  Executive  Committee  and  Board  of  Directors  are 
also  mainly  composed  of  members  of  the  Hunt. 

In  connection  with  the  Montreal  Hunt,  all  Montrealers  feel  proud  to 
think  that  if  it  is  not  the  oldest,  it  is  one  of  the  oldest  Hunts  on  this  conti- 
nent, and  everythmg  is  done  as  nearly  as  possible  on  the  plans  pursued  by 
the  best  establishments  in  England.  Genuine  hunting  of  only  the  wild  fox  is 
made  a  rule.  A  complete  map  of  the  country  is  furnished  each  member, 
showing  every  road,  brook,  village,  shoeing-forge  and  covert.  Every  fox's 
earth  in  the  hunting  country  is  known,  and  a  good-earth  stopper  is  employed  ; 
an  example  which  might  well  be  followed  by  many  hunts  on  this  continent. 


112 


Mr.  HITCHCOCK'S  Hounds 

MASTER Thomas  Hitchcock,  Jr.,  Esq. 

HUNTSMAN - - The  Master 

WHIPPER-IN J.  Lambert 

HOUNDS 40  couples,  American 

KENNELS  AND  POST-OFFICE - Aiken,  S.  C. 

DAYS  OF  MEETING Four  days  a  week 

LENGTH  OF  SEASON - - November   15th  to  March  1st 

FEW  men  who  have  hunted  in  England  and  seen  the  excellent  work 
of  a  good  English  pack  will  listen  to  any  comparison  between 
English  and  American  hounds,  or  between  the  two  methods 
of  following  the  sport  of  fox-hunting.  Mr.  Thomas  Hitchcock,  Jr.,  was 
educated  at  Oxford  University  and  has  hunted  with  almost  all  of  the  best 
packs  in  the  Kingdom,  and  yet  he  maintains  forty  couples  of  American 
hounds  —  one  of  the  largest  packs  in  the  country — on  his  estate  at  Aiken, 
South  Carolina,  and  is  as  staunch  an  upholder  of  the  American  hound  as 
he  was  of  the  English  twenty  years  ago.  Mr.  Hitchcock  was  one  of  the 
men  who  were  instrumental  in  founding  the  Meadow  Brook  Hunt  and  was 
one  of  its  earliest  Masters,  continuing  to  hunt  there  to-day  at  such  times  as 
he  is  at  his  home  at  Westbury,  Long  Island. 

Some  years  ago,  looking  about  for  a  place  where  he  could  hunt  through- 
out the  winter,  he  hit  upon  Aiken,  South  Carolina,  as  the  most  suitable 
locality,  and  during  the  last  decade  has  maintained  there  his  private  pack  of 
foxhounds,  hunting  them  himself  usually  four  days  a  week  from  the  mid- 
dle of  November  until  the  end  of  February. 

While  Mr.  Hitchcock  is  partial  to  the  American  hound,  he,  of  course, 
admits  the  good  qualities  of  the  English,  but  insists  that  for  the  kind  of 
country  which  he  hunts  the  Americans  are  far  superior.  His  views  are  so 
strong,  and  were  so  clearly  expressed  to  one  of  the  authors  of  this  volume  a 

113 


MR.    HITCHCOCK'S 

year  or  so  ago,  that  we  are  tempted  to  give  them  in  full.  It  was  after  a 
day  with  the  Middlesex  hounds  in  Virginia,  and  Mr.  Hitchcock,  on  the 
train  to  Washington  that  evening,  in  the  company  of  the  M.  F.  H., 
expressed  himself  as  follows :  — 

"  You  mark  my  words,"  he  said,  "  you'll  change,  just  as  I  did.  Fifteen 
years  ago  I  thought  there  was  nothing  like  the  English  foxhound,  and  I  am 
not  sure  there  is  for  his  own  country,  but  not  for  America,  and  certainly 
not  for  the  dry  sandy  soil  of  my  South  Carolina  country.  You  see,  the 
country  about  Aiken  is  wooded  with  scrub,  the  going  is  rough,  although 
there  is  nothing  much  to  stop  you  except  the  creeks,  which  are  swampy 
and  impossible  to  cross  except  at  certain  fords  —  there  is  practically  no  wire, 
thank  Heaven! — and  the  jumping  is  not  big.  Now,  taking  these  facts  into 
consideration,  and  they  are  largely  true  of  many  of  the  hunting  countries  in 
America,  we've  got  to  have  a  hound  with  a  lot  of  initiative,  because  in 
many  cases  the  huntsman  won't  be  there  to  help  him,  a  very  keen  nose,  be- 
cause the  scent  is  bad,  and  lots  of  voice  to  tell  us  where  he  is.  I  don't 
think  English  hounds  have  these  points,  at  any  rate  in  so  great  a  degree  as 
the  Americans. 

"  At  Aiken,  we  hunt  early  in  the  morning,  just  about  daylight.  We  have 
to  do  so  to  take  advantage  of  the  dew,  —  as  the  soil  is  fearfully  dry,  so 
much  so  that  I  don't  think  an  English  hound  would  own  a  line  half  the 
time.  You  saw  the  trouble  to-day  when  the  line  was  foiled  by  a  cur  dog 
and  your  hounds  were  at  fault.  They  picked  it  up  again,  of  course,  and 
hunted  it  beautifully,  but,  they  had  to  be  cast  to  do  it.  English  hounds  waste 
time,  that's  the  trouble,  and  you  can't  waste  time  when  you're  hunting  a 
fox."  The  Master  of  the  Middlesex  smoked  on  in  silence  and  Mr.  Hitch- 
cock continued:  "Scent's  a  queer  thing;  nobody  understands  it,  and  every- 
body has  theories  about  it,  mine  is  this" — he  took  a  couple  of  puffs  from 
his  cigar  and  drew  the  unlighted  end  along  his  coat-sleeve.  A  little  of  the 
smoke  clung  to  the  cloth,  as  it  always  does,  gradually  floating  away. 
"  That's  my  idea  of  scent,"  he  said,  "  it's  as  elusive  as  that.  Now,  if  that 
coat  were  damp,  you  know  it  would  stay  there  longer ;  so  it  would  if  the 
wrind  didn't  blow  it  off.     In  England  the  atmosphere  and  the  condition  of 

114 


THOMAS   HITCHCOCK,   JR.,    ESQ.,    M.F.H. 


MR.    HITCHCOCK'S 

the  ground  are  so  much  more  conducive  to  good  scent  than  with  us,  that 
English  hounds,  being  used  to  it,  cannot  go  on  unless  they  can  get  it  —  at 
least  not  fast  enough  to  keep  on  terms  with  their  fox.  They  lose  too  much 
time,  and  hounds  in  America  have  got  to  keep  near  a  fox  in  order  to  kill 
him.  I'd  like  you  to  see  my  hounds  work  and  you'd  see  the  difference  in 
a  minute.  We  go  out  with  perhaps  twenty  couples,  and  they  are  cast  off 
and  immediately  spread  themselves  out  very  wide.  They  are  unruly,  I'll 
admit,  but  they  don't  babble.  Presently  a  hound,  perhaps  a  quarter  of  a 
mile  away,  will  speak,  then  another  perhaps  backing  him  up,  perhaps  far- 
ther away,  then  another  and  another  until  finally  they  will  pack  in  to  the 
foremost  and  all  go  on  together.  Their  instinct  seems  to  be  to  '  get  forward* 
all  the  time.  If  they  lose  the  line  during  a  run,  they  are  not  cast,  nor 
do  they  cast  themselves  in  a  body ;  they  all  instantly  scatter  and  again  one 
hound  is  pretty  sure  to  strike  the  line,  and  there  is  no  time  wasted  when  he 
does.     To  put  it  in  a  nutshell,  the  hounds,  not  the  huntsman,  hunt  the  fox." 

The  Master  of  the  Middlesex  had  to  admit  that  if  all  American  packs 
had  advanced  to  this  state  of  efficiency  there  was  very  little  room  for  criticism 
from  anyone.  On  the  other  hand,  he  told  Mr.  Hitchcock  that,  in  his  opin- 
ion, hounds  bred  in  this  country  from  the  best  of  English  blood  would, 
within  a  reasonable  time,  become  adapted  to  the  conditions  of  atmosphere 
and  soil  and  at  the  same  time  possess  all  the  good  qualities  of  the  best 
American  hounds  and,  in  addition,  be  more  amenable  to  discipline  and 
breed  closer  to  a  type. 

"  Well,"  said  Mr.  Hitchcock,  "  I'll  admit  no  one  has  given  it  a  fair  trial 
yet,  although  I'm  told  that  Mr.  Mather's  hounds  are  very  good  in  their  work. 
I  hope  you  won't  be  disappointed  in  the  results  you  obtain,  though  I  fear 
you  will."    And  on  this  point,  the  two  disputants  will  probably  always  differ. 

Mr.  Hitchcock  has  had  good  luck  in  breeding  and  has  produced  a  pack 
which  today  has  few  equals.  At  the  time  of  his  first  hunting  the  Aiken 
country  there  were  only  gray  foxes  native  to  the  soil,  but  he  introduced  a 
number  of  red  foxes,  which  have  done  very  well  and  are  now  as  numerous 
as  the  grays.  The  runs  would  be  very  hard  to  describe,  owing  to  the  pecu- 
liar conformation  of  the   country,  the  immense  stretches   of  pine  woods 

115 


MR.    HITCHCOCK'S 

and  the  impracticability  of  earth-stopping;  but  the  red  foxes  usually  give  long, 
hard  runs  before  going  to  ground.  The  grays,  of  course,  unless  they  climb 
a  tree  in  the  first  twenty  minutes,  are  usually  quickly  killed. 

The  landowners  are  very  favorable  to  hunting,  but  must  be  treated  with 
the  greatest  consideration,  being  freeholders  and  very  independent.  Mr. 
Hitchcock  finds  that  thoroughbred  horses  are  best  suited  to  his  country  and 
uses  nothing  else.  It  seems  to  us  quite  unnecessary  to  describe  his  horses, 
as  they  are  noted  throughout  the  length  and  breadth  of  America  as  being  of 
the  best,  both  as  to  conformation  and  manners. 


116 


*T&. 


Mr.  MADDUX'S  Hounds 

MASTER -James  K.  Maddux,  Esq. 

HUNTSMAN - - - - The  Master 

WHIPPER-IN - - Frank  Helm 

HOUNDS - - ~ 1 0  couples,  American 

KENNELS  AND  POST-OFFICE - - "Leeton  HUl,"  Warrenton,  Va. 

DAYS  OF  MEETING Every  hunting  day 

LENGTH  OF  SEASON - October  1st  to  April  ist 


IN  1888,  Mr.  James  K.  Maddux  first  began  to  keep  his  own  hounds, 
having  hunted  before  that  time  with  the  various  packs  which  were 
maintained  in  and  about  Warrenton;  a  pack  of  some  sort  having 
always  been  kept  there.  Toward  the  end  of  the  80's  so  many  new  settlers 
came  in  that  it  seemed  likely  that  support  could  be  secured  for  two  regular 
packs,  and  the  Warrenton  Hounds  divided  the  country  with  the  private  pack, 
which  Mr.  Maddux  established. 

No  stauncher  supporter  of  the  American  hound  breathes  than  Mr.  Mad- 
dux, and  it  is  perhaps  needless  to  say  that  his  hounds  are  all  of  that 
variety,  and  when  Mr.  Maddux  says  "  American,"  he  means  it,  his  hounds 
not  having  to  his  knowledge  a  single  cross  of  English  blood.  Just  what 
their  breeding  is  it  would  be  difficult  to  prove,  but  they  are  not,  as  are  some 
of  the  so-called  American  hounds,  three-quarters  English.  Mr.  Maddux 
states  that  in  the  country  over  which  he  hunts,  which  is  hilly  and  contains 
large  tracts  of  woodland,  and  areas  where  it  is  quite  impossible  for  the  hunts- 
man to  be  with  hounds  much  of  the  time,  the  independence  and  free 
tongues  of  his  hounds  enable  him  to  get  better  sport  with  them  than  he  can 
with  any  others. 

The  fencing  is  varied,  consisting  of  stone  walls,  post-and-rail,  "  snake " 
and  plank  fences,  but  the  going  is  not  bad,  and  in  the  open  parts  of  the 

117 


MR.    MADDUX'S 

country  hounds  run  very  fast,  requiring  a  bold,  thoroughbred  horse  to  stay 
with  them. 

Mr.  Maddux's  pack  is  a  small  one ;  some  ten  couples  only  being  kept  in 
the  "  Leeton  Hill "  kennels  and  maintained,  of  course,  by  the  Master,  who 
receives  no  subscription.  He  has  always  hunted  the  hounds  himself  and 
for  the  last  eight  or  ten  seasons  has  gone  out  on  every  good  hunting  day  on 
which  circumstances  permitted. 

The  attitude  of  the  landovmers  about  Warrenton  is  very  friendly  to  fox- 
hunting, and  many  of  them  take  the  field  themselves  behind  Mr.  Maddux's 
little  pack. 

In  1904,  the  M.  F.  H.  applied  for  recognition  to  the  National  Steeple- 
chase and  Hunt  Association,  which  was  promptly  granted.  The  country 
about  Warrenton  is  fast  settling  up  with  people  who  are  always  on  the 
lookout  for  sport  with  horse  and  hound,  and  Fields  have  increased  in  number 
since  the  early  days,  numbering  from  twenty  to  twenty-five  on  an  average, 
while  on  special  occasions  many  more  follow,  none  of  them  bemg  keener  or 
going  better  than  Mrs.  Maddux,  the  vnie  of  the  Master,  who  hunts  not  only 
with  her  husband's  pack,  but  also  vsrith  the  Warrenton  "  drag." 


118 


^^ 


Mr.  OKIE'S  Hounds 

DISTINCTIVE  COLLAR - - -Green  with  orange  piping 

MASTER - - - - F.  W.  Okie.  Esq. 

HUNTSMAN - - The  Master 

WHIPPER-IN James  Anderson 

HOUNDS - 1 5  couples,  American 

KENNELS  AND  POST-OFFICE MarshaU.  Va. 

DAYS  OF  MEETING Six  days  a  week 

LENGTH  OF  SEASON September  Istto  April  1st 

SOME  eight  miles  south-west  from  Upperville,  further  up  the  Pied- 
mont Valley,  lies  what  is,  perhaps,  the  best  territory  from  a  hunting 
man's  point  of  view  in  Fauquier  County,  Virginia.  It  is  a  compara- 
tively undiscovered  country ;  in  fact,  it  was  not  until  1 904,  when  Mr.  F. 
W.  Okie  emigrated  to  Virginia  from  the  Meadow  Brook  country,  that  there 
was  any  regular  hunting.  Mr.  Okie  settled  at  Marshall  and,  finding  the 
country  perfect  for  the  sport,  promptly  began  to  keep  hounds  of  his  own. 

The  foxes  throughout  Mr.  Okie's  country  are  strong  and  game,  and  the 
attitude  of  the  landowners  entirely  favorable.  The  Master  has  always  been 
a  believer  in  the  American  foxhounds,  and  beginning  with  a  few  couples, 
he  has  developed  a  pack  which  now  niunbers  fifteen  couples  and  which 
does  its  work  in  a  thoroughly  satisfactory  manner.  The  country,  like  all 
of  the  Piedmont  Valley,  is  open,  with  great  rolling  grazing  lands  and  small 
coverts,  while  the  fencing  is  stiff  but  clean,  owing  to  the  stock-raising  pur- 
suits of  the  farmers. 

A  strong,  clever,  thoroughbred  horse  is  what  is  needed  for  the  country. 
Mr.  Okie  has  a  large  country  estate  at  Marshall  and  always  welcomes  visit- 
ing sportsmen  in  the  most  hospitable  manner. 

In  1 905,  Mr.  Okie  acted  as  alternate  judge  v«th  Mr.  James  K.  Maddux 
in  the  English-American  foxhound  match  in  the  Piedmont  Valley. 

119 


MR.    OKIE'S 

As  this  volume  goes  to  press,  it  gives  the  authors  great  pleasure  to  be 
able  to  state  that  Mr.  Okie  has  invited  the  Master  of  the  Middlesex  Fox- 
hounds to  hunt  the  country  in  conjunction  with  him  during  the  season 
of  1908. 


120 


The  Myopia  Hunt 


DISTINCTIVE  COLLAR - - anary 

EVENING  DRESS Scarlet  coat,  canary  facings 

MASTER - - George  S.  MandeU,  Esq. 

SECRETARY  W.  H.  Seabury,  Esq.,  Somerset  Club,  Boston,  Mass. 

HUNTSMAN ^ The  Master 

WHIPPER-IN - Joe  Banar 

HOUNDS - 20  couples.  English 

KENNELS  AND  POST-OFFICE Hamilton,  Mass. 

DAYS  OF  MEETING Tuesday,  Thursday  and  Saturday 


MORE  than  a  quarter  of  a  century  ago,  in  the  year  1 879,  a  few 
mutually  agreeable  men  were  accustomed  to  meet  at  Win- 
chester, Massachusetts,  to  play  tennis  and  enjoy  such  other 
outdoor  sports  as  might  suggest  themselves.  There  they  leased  a  small  house 
and  formed  a  nucleus  around  which  the  Country  Club  of  Brookline, — which, 
by  the  way,  is  the  pioneer  Country  Club  in  America,  —  was  eventually  or- 
ganized. Hounds  were  suggested  by  Mr.  F.  H.  Prince,  who  had  hunted  in 
England,  and  in  1 88 1  a  draft  was  brought  from  Montreal,  and  hunted  by  Mr. 
Hugh  A.  Allan,  the  first  Master.  This  first  organization  was  called  "The 
Myopia  Hunt  Club,"  from  the  fact  that  most  of  its  members  were  near- 
sighted and  wore  spectacles  in  the  field.  The  pack,  which  saved  the  or- 
ganization from  losing  its  identity  on  the  formation  of  the  Country  Club, 
continued  at  Brookline  under  the  Mastership  of  Mr.  Frank  Seabury  as 
the  "  Myopia  Foxhounds  "  —  a  wheel  within  a  wheel,  hunting  part  of  the 
season  there  and  part  in  its  present  country  around  Hamilton,  Massachusetts. 
In  1 882,  kennels  were  built  in  Hamilton,  where  the  club  first  leased,  and 
afterward,  in  1 89 1 ,  purchased  the  Gibney  farm,  of  some  hundred  or  more 
acres.     The  old  farmhouse  is  still  the  centre  around  which  the  present  es- 

121 


THE    MYOPIA 

tablishtnent  has  been  formed,  and  represents  the  spirit  of  the  club,  which  is 
that  new  ideas  should  be  grafted  on  the  old,  —  not  supplant  them. 

At  first  there  were  paper-chases  as  well  as  fox-hunts ;  but  in  1 885, 
beagles  were  presented  to  the  club  by  Mr.  George  H.  Warren,  and  the 
drag  was  first  introduced.  After  1 889,  there  was  very  little  fox-hunting,  as 
the  growing  up  of  the  community  and  the  unfitness  of  the  country  precluded 
the  best  of  sport. 

The  Club's  present  name — "  The  Myopia  Hunt  Club  " — assumed  on  its 
incorporation  in  1 89 1 ,  somewhat  belies  its  scope.  In  1 888,  polo  was  intro- 
duced, which  puts  it  among  the  earliest  organizations  to  take  up  that  sport. 
Interest  in  polo  is  still  unabated,  and  the  club  had  the  honor  of  having  one 
of  its  members,  Mr.  R.  L.  Agassiz,  on  the  all-American  team  which  visited 
England  in  1903.  In  1894,  golf  became  popular,  and  the  Myopia  links  to- 
day, an  I8-hole  course,  stand  among  the  best  in  the  country.  In  1902, 
a  court  tennis  building  was  erected,  and  this  has  been  well  supported;  fur- 
nishing a  connecting  link  in  the  series  of  sports  which  is  making  Myopia  a 
winter  as  well  as  a  summer  centre  of  sport  and  sociability.  For  all  these 
recreations  the  members  find  enthusiasm  and  in  them  take  an  equal  pride. 
The  regular  membership  of  the  club  is  1 00,  with  an  associate  membership 
to  meet  such  requirements  as  may  arise  through  a  changing  colony  of  summer 
residents  on  the  North  Shore. 

Of  course,  all  this  information  about  the  club  is  very  interesting,  but  since 
it  is  as  a  Hunt  Club  that  we  are  considering  Myopia,  the  hounds  and  ken- 
nels are  the  things  of  most  importance. 

Mr.  W.  H.  Seabury,  the  secretary  of  the  Hunt,  is  a  brother  of  Mr.  Frank 
Seabury,  who  acted  as  Master  from  1 883  to  1 892  ;  and  who,  during  his 
long  Mastership,  took  such  pains  to  get  the  landowners  interested  in  the  hunt- 
ing that  it  has  been  little  trouble  for  the  Masters  who  have  followed  him  to 
hunt  over  a  country  which  is  made  up  for  the  most  part  of  small  holdings. 
The  New  England  farmer  is  at  heart  usually  a  most  good-natured  individual, 
but  he  has  rather  a  horror  of  any  innovation,  particularly  if  it  has  to  do  v«th 
his  ancestral  foe.  There  are  some  men  who,  till  they  understand  hunting,  are 
absolutely  inimical  to  the  sport.     Fox-hunting,  as  they  know  it,  consists  in 

122 


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THE    MYOPIA 

going  out  with  one  or  two  slow-running  hounds  which  drive  the  fox  before 
them  at  a  leisurely  pace,  while  the  hunter  stands  at  some  chosen  spot  and 
shoots  the  quarry  as  he  goes  by.  The  spectacle  of  a  number  of  mounted 
men  dressed  in  scarlet  coats,  following  a  pack  of  hounds  which  are  running 
on  an  artificial  trail,  and  going  out  of  their  way  to  jump  fences,  is  a  source  of 
derision  and  of  annoyance  to  them. 

Riding  to  hounds  was  practically  unknown  in  New  England  when  Mr. 
Seabury  first  took  the  Myopia ;  and  it  was  in  a  great  degree  through  his 
friendliness  with  and  unending  courtesy  to  the  farmers  that  the  sport  has 
been  carried  on  at  all  in  New  England.  The  three  hunts  of  eastern 
Massachusetts,  the  Myopia,  the  Norfolk  and  the  Middlesex,  owe  a  great 
debt  to  Mr.  Seabury  for  this — perhaps  more  than  the  younger  members 
realize. 

In  1 883,  the  first  draft  of  hounds  came  from  England  from  the  Warwick- 
shire, which  was  then  under  the  Mastership  of  the  late  Lord  Willoughby 
de  Broke,  and  with  this  as  a  basis,  Mr.  Seabury  managed  to  breed  a  very 
fair  pack.  In  1 889,  another  draft  came  over  from  England,  sent  by  Mr. 
George  H.  Warren,  again  from  the  Warwickshire.  From  1 882  to  1 889  Mr. 
Seabury  used  his  foxhounds  purely  to  hunt  foxes ;  using  the  beagles  for  the 
drag-hunting.  He  hunted  the  hounds  himself,  with  John  Crosby  as  first  and 
William  Crosby  as  second  whipper-in,  and  one  of  the  authors  well  remem- 
bers going,  as  a  small  boy,  to  see  the  hounds — which  were  exceedingly  well 
turned  out  and  had  a  large  following  of  "  pinks "  —  draw  the  Chebacco 
Wood.     Of  the  sport  at  that  time  Mr.  Seabury  says : 

"  We  hunted  foxes  two  and  sometimes  three  days  a  week,  but  the  coun- 
try was  so  rough,  as  you  know,  that  the  foxes  were  able  to  get  away  most 
of  the  time.  In  fact,  we  only  killed  one,  but  we  had  many  a  good  run  and 
a  lot  of  sport  out  of  it,  the  pack  at  the  time  consisting  of  about  twenty 
couples." 

After  1889,  the  fox-hunting  was  practically  abandoned,  although  the 
hounds  went  out  for  foxes  occasionally  until  1898.  Mr.  Seabury  carried 
the  horn  until  1 893,  when  he  retired,  much  to  the  sorrow  of  everybody,  the 
Mastership  being  taken  by  Mr.  R.  M.  Appleton  until  the  Spanish  War 

123 


THE    MYOPIA 

called  him  away  during  the  season  of  1 898.  His  place  was  filled  by  Mr. 
T.  G.  Frothingham  for  a  season,  until  Mr.  Appleton  returned  and  again  took 
up  the  reins  of  government,  resigning  in  1900,  when  the  present  Master, 
Mr.  George  S.  Mandell,  was  elected  in  his  place.  Fox-hunting  had  ceased, 
the  reasons  for  this  being  evident  from  Mr.  Mandell's  own  remarks,  which 
follow : 

"  The  country  is  such  as  might  be  expected  when  chosen  from  a  New 
England  landscape.  It  lies  in  Essex  County  about  a  forty-minute  train 
ride  from  Boston,  principally  in  the  tovras  of  Wenham,  Hamilton,  Ipswich, 
Rowley  and  Topsfield,  with  a  few  of  the  choicest  runs  in  West  Newbury, 
Newburyport,  and  even  across  the  New  Hampshire  Ime.  To  make  this 
latter  available,  it  is  necessary  for  the  hounds  and  horses  to  lie  out  over 
night,  usually  the  night  before  the  meets. 

It  is  a  land  of  small  holdings;  and  by  actual  estimate,  the  Club  enjoys  its 
sport  through  the  courtesy  of  not  less  than  five  hundred  famiers.  The 
problem  is  to  tie  together  the  odd  bits  of  reclaimed  land  and  old  pastures 
into  a  continuous  gallop.  Added  to  its  natural  rockiness,  it  suffers  from  salt 
marshes,  while  directly  through  its  centre  runs  a  river  hedged  by  the  exten- 
sive Wenham  Swamp.  There  is  also  much  impenetrable  woodland,  while 
scarcely  a  field  is  without  wire. 

"  These  conditions  preclude  many  of  the  niceties  of  hunting.  To  take 
one's  own  line  would  be  extremely  hazardous.  Fences  are  usually  »tone 
walls,  generally  of  small  size,  but  occurring  higher  and  more  strongly  built 
with  sufficient  frequency  to  demand  a  good  jumper.  Wire  is  combated 
with  the  usual  panels  of  stout  fencing.  The  jumps  are  noted  for  their  trap- 
piness  rather  than  their  height,  and  require  an  intelligent,  rather  than  a  big 
jumper,  and  consequently  the  horses  are  highly  bred  with  a  very  considera- 
ble proportion  of  pure  blood.  In  class  they  have  steadily  improved  each 
year." 

Consequently,  Mr.  Mandell,  claiming  the  requirements  of  a  draghound 
to  be  materially  different  from  those  of  a  hound  engaged  in  the  pursuit  of 
the  fox,  bred  along  lines  which  he  conceded  were  unorthodox,  but  which 
he  believed  would  give  him  better  results,  with  the  material  he  had  at  hand 

124 


THE    MYOPIA 

and  the  time  he  could  afford  to  give  to  it,  than  if  he  had  followed  more 
accepted  lines. 

Speed  and  dash  are  the  principal  requisites  for  a  hound  at  Myopia. 
The  nature  of  the  country  makes  it  practically  obligatory  to  ride  directly  be- 
hind hounds,  and  if  they  do  not  possess  sufficient  speed  to  keep  out  of  the 
way  of  a  hard-riding,  well-mounted  Field  they  are  useless.  In  so  cramped 
a  country  any  crowding  at  the  fences,  when  perhaps  there  is  only  a  single 
narrow  panel  which  is  fit  to  jump,  is  not  only  disagreeable  but  positively 
dangerous. 

Breeding  from  nothing  but  pure  Elnglish  stock,  but  taking  great  pains  in 
the  selection  of  his  sires,  the  Master  had  in  his  kennels,  at  the  close  of  the 
season  of  1 907,  a  pack  of  big,  racy  hounds,  possessed  of  great  speed,  which 
flew  the  stone  walls  where  smaller  hounds  would  have  climbed  them.  As 
luck  would  have  it,  just  as  he  had  about  reached  his  ideal,  and  the  pack, 
bred  solely  by  him,  certainly  had  no  equals  in  America  as  draghounds, 
rabies  broke  out  in  the  kennels,  and  the  entire  pack  had  to  be  destroyed. 
Mr.  Mandell,  good  sportsman  that  he  is,  promptly  imported  a  new  draft 
from  England  to  fill  the  gap  for  the  time  being,  until  he  can  again  breed 
what  his  country  needs. 

TTie  regular  season  opens  on  Labor  Day,  and  continues  until  frost,  usually 
about  the  1  st  of  December.  The  hounds  meet  three  times  a  week.  Lat- 
terly there  have  been  informal  meets  in  August,  and  even  in  July,  known  as 
"  pony  drags." 

The  farmers  have  met  the  sport  in  a  most  generous  way,  and  there  is 
practically  no  spot  which  may  be  reasonably  ridden  over  where  hounds  are 
not  welcome.  At  the  conclusion  of  the  run  men  are  immediately  sent  over 
the  line  to  replace  wire  and  repair  damages. 

The  Field  turn  out  on  the  average  about  twenty  strong,  though  fifty  or 
more  persons  ride  during  the  season,  with  considerable  regularity.  There 
are  a  number  of  women  among  the  riders,  as  many  as  eight  frequently 
riding  at  the  same  time.  The  difficulty  of  recruiting  the  Field  and  giving 
opportunity  for  developing  green  horses  is  greater  in  drag-hunting  than  in  fox- 
hunting.   A  successful  drag  is  necessarily  a  burst  from  start  to  finish.    There 

125 


THE    MYOPIA 

are  not  the  opportunities  to  school  while  the  hounds  are  drawing,  or  as  the 
pack  "  come  to  their  noses."  An  innovation  which  proved  a  great  success 
in  this  line  were  the  meets  of  Mr.  John  Caswell's  beagle  pack  before  the 
season  opened.  Mr.  Caswell  has  now,  unfortunately,  been  compelled  to 
abandon  these  meets,  the  "pony-drags"  already  referred  to  taking  their  place. 
There  is  no  doubt  of  the  popularity  of  these  junior  meets.  The  beagles 
are  replaced  by  a  pack  of  the  old  hounds,  troubled  with  the  "  slows  "  and 
further  kept  back  by  a  scent  laid  with  many  checks. 

There  is  no  better  experience  for  the  novice  than  to  ride  with  the  man 
who  lays  the  drag.  There  are  also  opportunities  of  learning  while  the 
hounds  are  being  conditioned;  and  any  novice  who  needs  more  than  oppor- 
tunity is  not  sufficiently  good  material  to  be  worth  while  bothering  about. 

The  above  will  give  to  the  reader  an  idea  of  the  pains  taken  at  Myopia 
to  let  the  youngsters  join  in  the  sport  and  to  instil  in  them  a  love  for  cross- 
country riding.  One  can  see  at  the  early  morning  meets  of  the  pony  drags 
many  a  future  hunting  man  and  woman  who  bears  a  name  which  was 
among  those  of  the  original  Myopia  members  who  hunted  foxes  at  Win- 
chester in  1 879. 


126 


HF.NKY  G.  VAUGHAN,  ESQ.,  M.F.H.   1902- 
I-rom  II  Painting  by  Charles  Hopkinson.  Esq. 


The  Norfolk  Hunt 

DISTINCTIVE  COLLAR - _  Light  green 

EVENING  DRESS _ _ Scarlet  coat.  light  green  facings 

MASTER Henry  G.  Vaughan.  Esq. 

SECRETARY    - - Robert  Homans,  Esq.,  Boston,  Mass. 

HUNTSMAN _ The  Master 

WHIPPERS  IN  Hst,  Andrew  McGregor 
/  2nd,  Nicholas  Walsh 

KENNEL  HUNTSMAN _ Andrew  McGregor 

HOUNDS \  ^^  couples,  English 

f  8  couples,  American 

KENNELS  AND  POST-OFFICE Medfield,  Mass. 

DAYS  OF  MEETING - Tuesday,  Thursday  and  Saturday 

LENGTH  OF  SEASON _ September  1st  to  December  15th 


HUNTING  at  Myopia  had  been  going  on  for  more  than  fifteen 
years  when,  in  1 895,  a  number  of  gentlemen  formed  themselves 
into  an  association  known  as  the  Norfolk  Hunt,  and  elected 
Mr.  Joseph  Balch  to  the  Mastership.  As  all  these  gentlemen  were  mem- 
bers of  the  Dedham  Polo  Club,  the  newly  formed  Hunt  at  first  made  its 
headquarters  there ;  the  Master  finding  good  open  country  over  which  to  lay 
his  drag.  In  those  days  there  was  no  fox-hunting  at  Norfolk  and  there  were 
only  about  half  a  dozen  followers  in  the  Field. 

The  first  draft  of  hounds  was  bought  at  the  Rugby  sale  in  England,  and 
these  were  later  recruited  by  some  good  drafts  from  the  Montreal.  The 
Hunt  throve  and  prospered  like  the  proverbial  green  bay  tree,  and  the  Fields 
grew  in  size  in  the  four  years  during  which  Mr.  Balch  ruled  over  the  pack, 
and  then,  business  duties  taking  too  much  of  his  time,  he  reluctantly  resigned. 
Captain  Samuel  D.  Parker,  commanding  Light  Battery  "  A,"  of  the  Mas- 

127 


THE    NORFOLK 

sachusetts  Volunteer  Militia,  was  elected  as  his  successor,  and  for  a  time 
hunted  over  much  the  same  territory.  As  the  Fields  grew  in  number,  how- 
ever, various  members  began  to  settle  at  Westwood,  a  little  village  some 
few  miles  west  of  Dedham,  and  in  1900  the  number  of  riders  had  in- 
creased so  much,  and  the  country  had  become  so  restricted,  that  the  hounds 
cind  horses  were  moved  during  the  hunting  season  to  temporary  quarters  in 
Medfield,  where  some  of  the  members  hired  a  house  for  the  season,  while 
others  stayed  at  the  Inn.  This  proved  such  a  successful  experiment  that  in 
1 90 1  a  property  of  over  one  hundred  acres,  on  the  line  between  Medfield 
and  Dover,  was  bought,  and  a  clubhouse  v^dth  sleeping  accommodations  for 
about  forty  members,  good  kennels,  and  stable  facilities  for  over  sixty  horses 
were  built.  So  it  was  that  six  years  after  the  Hunt  had  been  organized  it 
was  duly  incorporated,  and  Mr.  Francis  Feabody,  Jr.,  who  had  long  hunted 
with  the  Myopia  at  Hamilton,  was  elected  President  of  the  new  organiza- 
tion, known  from  that  time  as  the  Norfolk  Hunt  Club,  Captain  Parker  con- 
tinuing in  the  capacity  of  M.  F.  H.  until  1 903. 

While  Mr.  Balch  was  Master,  no  attempt  was  made  to  do  anything  but 
hunt  the  drag;  but  Captain  Parker  was  more  ambitious,  and  in  1899,  en- 
couraged by  the  enthusiastic  support  of  a  number  of  lovers  of  fox-hunting, 
he  took  the  pack  down  to  Cape  Cod  and  hunted  the  wild  fox  along  the 
sand  dunes  of  the  coast,  after  the  ground  in  Norfolk  County  had  frozen  too 
hard  to  admit  of  hunting  about  Medfield. 

From  an  indifferent  lot  of  hounds  Captain  Parker  set  to  work  to  produce 
a  pack  which  could  also  be  used  for  the  better  sport  of  fox-hunting,  and 
with  this  end  in  view,  Andrew  McGregor,  a  Scotchman  of  considerable 
experience,  was  employed  as  huntsman  in  1899,  and  is  still  in  the  employ 
of  the  Club.  He  and  Captain  Parker,  working  together,  improved  the 
hounds  very  much,  breeding  a  good  many,  and  getting  yearly  drafts  from 
the  Montreal,  but  at  the  close  of  the  season  of  1 902,  Captain  Parker  re- 
signed his  office — having  found  that  it  took  too  much  of  his  time — his 
resignation  causing  great  regret  among  the  members  of  the  Hunt,  who  ap- 
preciated his  untiring  efforts  to  improve  the  pack  and  the  country. 

Mr.  Henry  G.  Vaughan,  the  present  Master,  was  elected  in  his  stead, 

128 


HUNT  STAFF  AND  HOUNDS 


A.   MrC.REGOE,    1ST   WIIIPPER-IN  AND  KENNEL  HUNTSMAN 


THE    NORFOLK 

and  although  he  was  comparatively  new  at  the  game,  his  Mastership  has 
been  a  most  successful  one.  Like  his  predecessor,  he  hunts  the  hounds  him- 
self, and  although  a  busy  man,  finds  time  to  be  on  hand  three  days  a  week, 
and  sometimes  four.  Although  not  a  hound  man  to  begin  with,  Mr. 
Vaughan  has  taken  infinite  pains  to  better  his  pack.  It  has  steadily  im- 
proved under  him,  and  some  very  good  hounds  have  been  bred.  In  1 904 
and  1 905  he  had  drafts  from  the  Cheshire,  and  these,  together  with  occa- 
sional drafts  from  the  Genesee  Valley  and  the  Montreal,  have  brought  the 
pack  to  a  high  level  of  excellence.  In  1905,  Mr.  Vaughan  showed  five 
couples  of  hounds  at  the  Country  Club  Horse  Show  and  won,  competing 
against  the  best  packs  in  New  England  and,  although  the  hounds  have  not 
been  seen  much  of  late  on  the  flags,  except  at  the  National  Hound  Show, 
the  pack  is  of  a  much  higher  quality  than  when  Mr.  Vaughan  took  hold  of 
it.  The  Master,  who  holds  the  office  of  Secretary  of  the  Masters  of  Fox- 
hounds Association  of  America,  has  taken  great  interest  in  the  South  Lin- 
coln Show  and  the  Norfolk  entries  have  carried  off  some  very  good  trophies, 
notably  the  Champion  Bitch  Cup  won  in  1 906  by  "  Woodnote." 

McGregor,  the  huntsman,  has  a  strong  liking  for  Amencan  hounds  and  has 
managed  to  interest  the  Master  in  them  to  a  considerable  extent.  "  Vanquish," 
a  bitch  bred  by  Mr.  Vaughan  at  the  Norfolk  ketmels,  is  by  the  Cheshire 
"Dashwood"  out  of  a  half-bred  American  bitch,  and  has  won  the  title  of 
"Champion"  at  the  various  shows  at  which  she  has  appeared  in  American 
foxhound  classes.  This  fact  is  mentioned  by  the  authors  to  show  how  lax 
is  the  standard  for  American  hounds  on  the  flags  today.  Be  this  as  it  may, 
Mr.  Vaughan's  experiments  in  the  crossing  of  English  and  American  hounds 
will  doubtless  prove  of  great  interest  and  assistance  to  New  England  hound 
men  in  general,  and  it  is  to  be  hoped  that  a  near  day  may  see  the  Norfolk 
devoting  more  of  its  time  to  fox-hunting.  The  Cape  Cod  season,  now  last- 
ing but  two  weeks,  has  become  an  annual  feature,  and  the  taste  it  gives  the 
members  of  the  better  sport  will  do  much  to  whet  their  appetites. 

Mr.  Vaughan  himself  has  some  doubts  as  to  whether  this  will  ever  oc- 
cur, for,  although  many  of  the  members  find  time  each  year  to  go  to  the 
Cape  for  a  couple  of  weeks'  hunting,  the  home  country  is  so  infested  with 

129 


THE    NORFOLK 

wire  that  fox-hunting  there  would  be  very  difficult,  owing  to  the  fact  that 
hounds  would  probably  get  away  from  huntsman  and  Field  with  astomshmg 

regularity. 

The  clubhouse,  which  is  in  the  township  of  Medfield.  is  most  advanta- 
geously placed  in  the  middle  of  the  country,  and  the  latter  has  been  very 
greatly  extended  under  Mr.  Vaughan's  Mastership.  It  lies  for  the  most  part 
about  Dover.  Medfield.  Millis.  and  the  towns  to  the  westward  of  them, 
although  once  a  year  runs  are  laid  in  Framingham.  on  the  edge  of  Middlesex 
County,  in  the  country  ruled  over  by  Messrs.  Bowditch  and  Perkins.  Thus 
the  Framingham  country  may  be  said  to  be  a  sort  of  neutral  ground  be- 
tween the  Norfolk  and  the  Middlesex,  the  latter  Hunt  sometimes  hunting 
the  same  country,  by  invitation  of  its  joint  Masters. 

The  accompanying  photograph  gives  a  very  good  idea  of  the  kind  ot 
fencing  to  be  met  with  in  a  day  with  Norfolk,  and  for  the  trappy  stone  walls 
and  narrow  lanes  it  has  been  found  that  a  half-bred  horse  is  best  suited. 

Norfolk  can  probably  boast  the  largest  Fields  that  follow  a  drag  m 
America,  it  being  no  uncommon  sight  to  see  from  forty  to  fifty  out  on  a 
good  day:  in  fact  of  late  years  the  cramped  nature  of  the  country  has  made 
it  necessary  to  put  a  limit  on  the  club  membership. 


130 


The  Oak  Ridge  Hunt  Club 

DISTINCTIVE  COLLAR - - - - - Seal  brown 

EVENING  DRESS - ~ - 5carlel  coat,  seal  brown  facings 

MASTER - — J.  M.  B.  Lewis,  Esq. 

SECRETARY - _ _ H.  D.  WeUs,  Esq.,  Lynchburg,  Va. 

HUNTSMAN - -- _ _ Ed  Cash 

HON.  WHIPPERS-IN - \  ['\  ^^^^-  ^^'^''^"'  ^!?- 

(  2na,  William  Beasley,  Esq. 

HOUNDS — - - - - - 1 8  couples,  American 

KENNELS  AND  POST-OFFICE - Lynchburg,  Va. 

DAYS  OF  MEETING        - ~ -         \  ^°^°^^^'    ^^ery  hunting  day 

(  Draghounds,  Saturday 

LENGTH  OF  SEASON - - - October  1st  to  May  1st 


ABOUT  the  year  1887,  the  Messrs.  E.  C.  Hamner.  Chas.  M. 
Guggenheimer,  Hon.  Peter  J.  Otey,  Dr.  R.  W.  Morgan,  Chas. 
E.  Heald,  N.  C.  Manson  and  Maj.  Marcellus  Moorman,  who 
had  been  hunting  about  Lynchburg,  Virginia,  with  the  various  packs  of 
hounds  in  that  region,  joined  forces  and  organized  under  the  name  of  the  Oak 
Ridge  Hunt  Club.  Electing  Dr.  R.  W.  Morgan  as  M.  F.  H.,  they  began 
to  hunt  foxes  on  regular  days,  and  the  farmers,  quick  to  appreciate  the  advan- 
tages of  having  their  country  hunted  by  an  organized  Hunt,  rather  than  by 
several  individuals,  met  the  wishes  of  the  members  in  every  possible  way, 
allowing  them  the  hunting  privileges  of  their  farms  and  even  giving  them  the 
most  pressing  invitations  to  come  frequently.  This  spirit,  which  has  always 
been  manifest,  is  a  tremendous  advantage  to  the  Hunt,  and  since  both  red 
and  gray  foxes  are  very  numerous  and  a  source  of  constant  annoyance  and 
pecuniary  loss  to  the  farmers,  the  members  of  the  Oak  Ridge  Hunt  endeav- 
or both  by  their  zeal  in  hunting  and  by  recognizing  their  obligations  in  the 

131 


THE    OAK    RIDGE 

matter  of  crops,  seeded  land,  etc.,  to  repay  the  landowners  for  their  liberal- 
ity to  the  sport  and  to  retain  their  good  will. 

The  foxhounds  go  out  every  day  on  which  hunting  is  possible  during  the 
season,  which  lasts  from  late  September  until  March,  and  account  for  many 
foxes,  a  majority  of  which  are  of  the  short-running  gray  variety,  although  the 
red  foxes  of  this  section  of  Virginia,  so  noted  for  their  stoutness  and  game- 
ness,  will  often  stand  up  in  front  of  hounds  for  several  hours,  occasionally 
making  from  eight  to  twelve  mile  points.  Earth-stopping, — as  anyone  who 
knows  Virginia  must  realize,  —  is  difficult  of  accomplishment  in  a  country 
where  foxes  breed  chiefly  in  rocky  bluffs  and  ravines.  Were  this  not  the 
case,  many  more  of  the  red  foxes  would  be  killed  above  ground  by  the  ex- 
cellent working  pack  of  the  Oak  Ridge. 

The  country  hunted  by  them  is  a  fine  sporting  one  and  very  large  in  ex- 
tent, comprismg  the  counties  of  Amherst,  Campbell,  and  parts  of  Bedford 
and  Appomattox,  in  each  of  which  there  is  some  very  fine  rolling,  open 
country  with  steep  bluffs  and  heavy  growths  of  ivy  and  laurel.  Some  of 
the  best  coverts  are  practically  unrideable,  owing  to  the  wild-grape  vines  and 
wire,  although  the  latter  has  not  yet  become,  in  itself,  a  serious  obstacle  to 
sport. 

Under  the  able  Mastership  of  Dr.  Morgan,  who  ruled  over  the  country 
for  eleven  seasons  to  the  universal  satisfaction  of  both  farmers  and  Field,  the 
pack  steadily  improved,  and  when  he  resigned  in  the  autumn  of  1 899,  the 
present  Master,  Mr.  J.  M.  B.  Lewis,  who  was  elected  to  succeed  him,  found 
a  first-rate  lot  of  hounds  in  the  kennels.  A  drag  pack  is  also  maintained  by 
the  Oak  Ridge,  meeting  on  Saturdays  for  those  of  the  members  who  can 
only  spare  time  for  a  weekly  gallop. 

As  is  prevalent  with  Virginia  packs,  the  first  hounds  used  were  drafts 
from  private  kennels  and,  in  the  case  of  the  Oak  Ridge,  were  obtained  from 
Mr.  Thomas  Hubbard  of  Campbell  County  and  Mr.  Thomas  Cardwell  of 
Appomattox  County.  Selecting  the  best  of  these.  Dr.  Morgan  bred  his  pack 
wath  great  care,  and  later  resorted  to  an  infusion  of  the  blood  of  the  Loving 
hounds  from  Amherst  County,  which  carried  in  their  veins  a  strong  strain  of 
good  English  blood.     He  also  added,  toward  the  end  of  his  Mastership,  a 

132 


J.  M.    B.   LEWIS,   ESQ.,   M.F.H. 


^^- 


THE    OAK    RIDGE 

draft  from  the  noted  Walker  pack  of  Kentucky,  and  in  1 898  obtained  from 
the  private  pack  of  Dr.  Burke  of  Danville,  Kentucky,  a  stallion  hound  which 
he  used  extensively  and  which  has  left  a  strong  impression. 

When  the  present  Master  assumed  the  reins  of  office,  he  continued  the 
policies  of  his  predecessor,  and  in  the  year  1 900,  brought  in  a  stallion 
hound  of  rare  merit  from  the  pack  of  Mr.  D.  S.  Lewis,  of  Harrisonburg, 
Virginia,  which  has  very  markedly  improved  the  working  qualities  and 
levelness  of  the  Oak  Ridge  hounds;  so  that  at  the  present  time  no  hounds 
in  Virginia  show  better  wild  fox-hunting  than  is  enjoyed  by  the  Master  and 
Field  of  this  sporting  little  Hunt. 

While  the  cramped  nature  of  some  of  the  country  is  best  negotiated  by  a 
quiet  three-quarter-bred  horse,  yet  the  Master  and  a  number  of  his  Field 
prefer  and  always  ride  clean-breds,  as  the  days  are  long  and  the  pace  is 
often  very  severe. 

Although  the  Oak  Ridge  country  has  not,  hitherto,  been  so  well  known 
as  other  portions  of  the  great  fox-hunting  state  of  Virginia,  cmd  it  was  not 
until  the  season  of  1908  that  the  Hunt  applied  for  recognition  by  the 
National  Steeplechase  and  Hunt  Association,  yet  visiting  sportsmen  have  al- 
ways been  shovra  a  high  class  of  sport  and  a  cordial  welcome  by  the  mem- 
bers of  the  Oak  Ridge  Hunt. 


133 


The  Onwentsia  Hunt 


EVENING  DRESS - — Scarlet  coat,  yellow  facings 

MASTER — James  F.  Lord,  Esq. 

SECRETARY - - - -  Francis  C.  Farwell,  Esq.,  Lake  Forest,  lU. 

HUNTSMAN - - — - - Arthur  Paley 

WHIPPERSIN - \  I'''  ^'Z^'t°\ 

(  2nd,  Will  INaughton 

HOUNDS ~— --- - 16  couples,  English 

KENNELS  AND  POST-OFFICE Lake  Forest,  lU. 

DAYS  OF  MEETING - - -Tuesday,  Thursday  and  Saturday 


LENGTH  OF  SEASON -  \  September   ist  to 

(  and  April  I  st  to  J 


December    I  st 
une  1st. 


TWENTY-EIGHT  miles  north  of  the  city  of  Chicago  is  located 
a  colony  of  business  men  who,  in  addition  to  the  sports  usually 
indulged  in,  in  such  communities,  have  endeavored  to  establish 
that  of  cross-country  riding.  In  the  autumn  of  1 90 1 ,  a  paper-chase  club 
was  organized,  and  this  proving  very  popular,  the  next  step,  naturally,  was 
the  establishment  of  a  pack  of  hounds.  Being  novices  at  the  game,  and  not 
wishing  to  begin  on  too  pretentious  a  scale,  Mr.  Arthur  T.  Aldis,  who  had 
been  elected  Master,  looked  about  to  see  what  sort  of  hounds  would  be 
most  advantageous  to  follow  in  what  seemed  a  most  unpromising  country. 
Hunting  men  from  the  older  communities  of  the  east  and  south  must  bear 
in  mind  that  the  western  farmer  would  surely  go  into  bankruptcy  were  he 
to  fence  his  farm  in  a  similar  manner  to  his  brother  in  the  east.  Wood  is 
at  a  premium,  and  far  too  valuable  to  use  for  rail  fences;  and  wire,  the 
hunting  man's  curse,  is  the  only  substitute.  Its  use  about  Lake  Forest  has 
ruined  an  otherwise  beautiful  country  and  put  fox-hunting  quite  out  of  the 
question. 

134 


JAMKS  K.    LORD,    ESQ.,    M.F.H. 


THE    ONWENTSIA 

Starting  with  these  disadvantages,  but  backed  by  liberal  subscriptions 
and  an  endless  amount  of  enthusiasm,  Mr.  Aldis  bought  eight  couples  of 
English  foxhounds  from  the  Chevy  Chase,  of  which  Mr.  Clarence  Moore 
was  M.  F.  H.,  —  in  April  of  1 902.  Mr.  Moore  took  sufficient  interest  in 
the  formation  of  the  Hunt  to  send  out  with  this  draft  his  huntsman,  Robert 
Curran,  who  proved  very  useful  in  showing  the  first  huntsman  of  the  On- 
wentsia  some  of  the  tricks  of  his  trade.  A  little  later,  hearing  that  the  Mid- 
dlesex Hunt  was  about  to  dispose  of  a  pack  of  beagles,  which  had  been 
ridden  after  for  some  years  and  were  admittedly  the  fastest  of  their  kind  in 
America,  Mr.  Aldis  also  purchased  a  draft  of  them,  but  they  never  proved 
very  popular  and  were  later  disposed  of. 

The  next  thing  to  do  was  to  get  the  country  into  sufficiently  good  shape 
to  ride  over,  and  this  was  accomplished  by  obtaining  permission  from  the 
farmers  to  build  panels  of  timber  from  forty  to  fifty  yards  wide  in  the  wire 
fences.  The  rideable  area  was  thus  steadily  expanded  under  Mr.  Aldis's 
energetic  rule  and  the  Fields  increased  both  in  numbers  and  experience. 

In  1 903,  a  draft  was  procured  from  the  Montreal  Hunt  and  in  the  fol- 
lowing autumn  these  were  augmented  by  more  hounds  from  the  Green 
Spring  Valley,  which  were  hunted  with  the  others  with  the  idea  that  they 
would  improve  the  music  of  the  pack.  This  they  did,  but  were  found  to 
be  uncontrollable  and  were  promptly  dreifted. 

On  December  I  st,  1 903,  Mr.  W.  Vemon  Booth  succeeded  Mr.  Aldis 
as  Master,  and  continued  to  carry  out  the  work  begun  by  his  predecessor, 
his  first  step  being  to  get  more  hounds  from  the  Montreal  and  the  Middle- 
sex. He  also  engaged,  as  huntsman,  Arthur  Paley,  who  had  been  first 
whipper-in  to  the  Middlesex  draghounds,  and  with  the  latter's  experienced 
assistance  improved  the  pack  in  pace  and  uniformity  and  increased  the  ride- 
able  area,  until  his  country  now  extends  twelve  miles  south,  nine  miles  west 
and  six  miles  north  from  the  kennels,  which  are  on  the  borders  of  the  lake. 
Drafts  have  been  acquired  from  year  to  year  from  various  eastern  packs, 
perhaps  the  most  important  being  the  acquisition  of  a  large  draft  from  the 
London  (Ontario)  hounds  in  1905.  The  country  being  chiefly  grass,  and 
the  fences  mainly  built  of  saplings,  and  therefore  unbreakable,  a  clean,  clever 

135 


THE    ONWENTSIA 

jumper  is  needed.  Two  lines,  aggregating  from  six  to  nine  miles,  are  usually 
laid,  and  as  the  hounds  go  a  fast  pace  over  this  open  country,  with  no  stone 
walls  to  stop  them,  a  thoroughbred  or  nearly  thoroughbred  hunter  is  re- 
quired. There  are  plenty  of  foxes  in  the  country,  but  so  far  it  has  seemed 
to  the  Master  impossible  to  get  good  sport  after  them,  on  account  of  the 
prevalence  of  ware. 

Each  year,  in  July,  the  Club  holds  its  annual  Horse  Show,  and  the  steady 
increase  in  numbers  and  quality  of  the  entries  m  the  hunter  classes  shows 
that  the  westerners  are  in  the  game  to  stay.  Most  of  the  members  have 
summer  homes  near  the  kennels,  and  there  is  a  good  hotel  which,  wdth  the 
clubhouse,  affords  ample  means  for  taking  good  care  of  any  visitors  who  may 
turn  up  to  try  a  day  with  the  Onwentsia  hounds. 

As  this  volume  goes  to  press,  word  is  received  that  Mr.  James  F.  Lord 
has  been  elected  Master;  taking  the  place  so  ably  filled  for  a  number  of 
years  by  Mr.  W.  Vernon  Booth. 


136 


o 

a  S 


z  0, 


The  Orange  County  Hunt 

EVENING  DRESS - - - - Scarlet  coat,  white  coDar 

MASTER - - — - — John  R.  Townsend,  Esq. 

SECRETARY - — _ Irving  G.  Taylor.  Esq..  The  Plains.  Va. 

HON.  HUNTSMAN - - WiUiam  Skinker.  Jr..  Esq. 

{1  St,  Ernest  Withers 
2nd,  Charles  Glasscock 
3rd,  Byron  Whittlesey 

HOUNDS  )  ^^  couples.  American 

(27  couples,  English 

KENNELS - - - - - - Goshen.  N.  Y..  and  The  Plains.  Va. 

DAYS  OF  MEETING - Monday.  Wednesday  and  Saturday 

LENGTH  OF  SEASON - - August  25th  to  March  25th 

IN  the  spring  of  1 900,  four  New  York  gentlemen,  Messrs.  Edward  H. 
Harriman,  F.  Gray  Griswold,  John  R.  Townsend  and  Dr.  J.  O. 
Green,  conceived  the  idea  of  keeping  a  pack  of  draghounds  somewhere 
in  Orange  County,  New  York,  and  fixed  upon  the  town  of  Goshen  as  the 
most  suitable  place  for  their  kennels. 

At  that  time,  owning  no  hounds,  and  having  only  a  sufficient  number  of 
horses  to  mount  themselves,  Mr.  P.  F.  Collier,  who  was  then  hunting  his 
own  pack  in  Monmouth  County,  near  Eatontown,  New  Jersey,  was  appealed 
to,  and  kindly  loaned  ten  couples  of  hounds,  a  huntsman,  a  whipper-in,  a 
kennelman  and  six  horses  on  which  to  mount  the  Hunt  Staff;  — thus  ena- 
bling the  Orange  County  Hunt  to  become  a  reality.  Hunting  was  begun 
early  the  following  autumn,  and  such  good  sport  resulted  that  it  was  decided 
to  empower  Mr.  Griswold  to  buy,  on  his  next  trip  to  England,  twenty-five 
couples  of  hounds.  He  was  successful  in  procuring  a  draft  of  high  quality, 
and  in  the  spring  of  1901  they  arrived  at  the  kennels  in  Goshen,  N.  Y. 
The  management  of  the  Hunt  was  entrusted  to  a  committee,  with  Mr.  Gris- 
wold, who  had  formerly  acted  in  the  capacity  of  Master  to  the  Queen's 

137 


THE    ORANGE    COUNTY 

County  and  Meadow  Brook  hounds,  carrying  the  horn.  The  following 
season  the  hounds  were  again  in  charge  of  a  committee,  with  Mr.  E.  S. 
Craven  ably  filling  Mr.  Griswold's  position ;  the  latter  having  resigned. 

Such  good  sport  was  enjoyed  during  these  seasons  that  the  originators 
felt  that  the  time  had  come  to  expand,  and  if  possible,  to  devote  much  of 
the  season  to  the  better  sport  of  fox-hunting.  With  this  object  in  view, 
the  Hunt  was  re-organized  and  put  on  a  financial  basis  which  enabled  it  to 
procure  suitable  wanter  quarters  in  the  south,  where  the  season  was  longer 
and  the  country  more  suited  to  the  purpose. 

In  1 903,  then,  Mr.  John  R.  Townsend  was  elected  M.  F.  H.,  and  im- 
mediately turned  his  attention  to  developing  the  southern  country.  Excel- 
lent kennels  and  extensive  stabling  were  located  at  the  Plains,  Fauquier 
County,  Virginia,  while  a  pleasant  clubhouse  was  built  for  the  accommoda- 
tion of  the  members.  A  number  of  men  from  northern  Hunts  whose  lo- 
cation did  not  allow  them  to  do  any  winter  hunting,  joined  the  Orange 
County,  and  enjoyed  the  sport  so  much  that  the  Fields  have  steadily  grown. 
Mr.  TowTisend,  whose  heart  and  soul  is  in  the  sport,  has  spent  a  great  deal 
of  time  experimenting  on  the  best  type  of  hound  for  the  country ;  in  fact  it 
was  he  who  offered  the  cup  which  was  the  trophy  competed  for  in  1 905, 
when  the  Middlesex  and  Grafton  hounds  held  their  memorable  match  in  a 
section  of  the  Piedmont  Hunt  country.  The  former  pack  made  its  head- 
quarters at  Middleburg,  some  ten  miles  north  of  the  Orange  County  kennels 
at  the  Plains,  and  the  next  season,  Mr.  Townsend,  finding  that  the  country 
about  the  Plains  was  insufficient  for  his  operations,  aided  in  forming  what 
is  known  as  the  Middleburg  Hunt,  which  is  nothing  more  nor  less  than  an 
offshoot  of  the  Orange  County.  Mr.  Percy  Evans  was  elected  M.  F.  H. 
of  the  new  Hunt,  which  has  a  long  list  of  the  landowners  about  Middleburg 
on  its  roll  of  members,  but  it  is  impossible  to  give  the  history  of  the  Orange 
County  Hunt  without  bringing  in  this  offshoot. 

The  country  hunted  by  the  Orange  County  pack,  proper,  differs  some- 
what in  character  from  the  Middleburg  country  already  described,  in  that 
the  fencing  is  bigger  and  less  negotiable,  much  of  it  being  practically  unjump- 
able  because  of  the  sunken  roads  which  intersect  some  portions. 

138 


P.    I 

Si;- 

8| 

< 

o  ■§ 


THE    ORANGE    COUNTY 

Foxes  found  in  the  Plains  country  often  run  toward  Middleburg,  and  so 
it  happens  that  the  two  packs  frequently  meet  when  hunting  on  the  same 
day.  A  great  portion  is  grazing  land  and  there  is  little  opposition  to  the 
hunting  on  the  part  of  the  farmers,  except  in  the  early  autumn,  when  damage 
is  caused  to  the  wheat  fields  by  hounds  as  well  as  horses.  Foxes  were  not 
so  plentiful  about  the  Plains  as  at  Middleburg,  but  a  great  many  have  been 
turned  out  and  they  are  on  the  increase. 

Mr.  Townsend  has  now  given  up  keeping  English  hounds  for  anything 
but  the  drag-hunting,  which  still  continues  in  the  north,  the  season  opening 
at  Goshen  about  August  25th  and  continuing  until  November  1  st,  when  the 
pack  goes  into  winter  quarters  and  the  members  betake  themselves  to  the 
Plains  to  hunt  foxes  behind  the  half-bred  hounds,  some  of  which  were  pro- 
cured from  Mr.  Harry  W.  Smith,  Master  of  the  Grafton.  It  will  be  seen 
that  the  Orange  County  Hunt  practically  maintains  three  packs :  —  the 
English  pack  at  Goshen,  New  York,  an  American  pack  at  the  Plains; 
and  a  third  pack  of  English  and  American  mixed.  The  American  pack  is 
hunted  by  Mr.  William  Skinker,  Jr.,  while  Claude  Hatcher,  at  Middleburg, 
has  shown  excellent  sport  with  the  mixed  pack,  as  will  be  seen  from  a  glance 
at  the  chapter  on  the  latter  Hunt. 


139 


The  Patapsco  Hunt 

DISTINCTIVE  UNIFORM -- Black  coat.  Hunt  buttons 

EVENING  DRESS - - - - Scarlet  coat,  robin's  egg-blue  facings 

MASTER — - - - Dorsey  M.  Williams.  Esq. 

SECRETARY - Rowland  C.  West,  Esq.,  Baltimore  Club,  Baltimore,  Md. 

HUNTSMAN - - - -~ Joseph  Harmon 

HON.  WHIPPERS-IN -- -  \  \'\  ^;,^?^f':  ^f '^''  ?'"• 

(  2nd,  W.  J.  H.  Watters,  Esq. 

HOUNDS - - — - 20  couples,  American 

KENNELS  AND  POST-OFFICE Washington  Road,  Elkridge,  Md. 

DAYS  OF  MEETING - j  Wednesday  and  Saturday.   Bye- 

(    days  Monday  and  I  hursday 

LENGTH  OF  SEASON September  1st  to  April  1st 


DURING  the  month  of  September,  1 898,  the  Overbrook  Fami, 
situated  in  Howard  County,  Maryland,  was  purchased  by  a 
little  band  of  sportsmen,  prominent  among  whom  were  the 
Messrs.  Murray  and  Grosvenor  Hanson,  Edward  and  Morris  Murray, 
Henry  J.  Bowdoin,  Gustav  T.  Dalcour,  Dorsey  M.  Williams  and  William 
R.  Eareckson,  who  had  joined  forces  in  order  to  put  fox-hunting  in  Howard 
County  on  a  more  permanent  footing. 

Some  of  these  gentlemen  had  maintained  small  packs  of  foxhounds  of 
their  own;  one  of  them,  Mr.  Murray  Hanson,  having  been  one  of  the 
early  Masters  of  the  Elkridge  Hunt,  and  all  were  keen,  enthusiastic  sports- 
men. Nearly  all  of  them  owned  hounds  which  they  contributed  to  the  pack 
of  the  new  organization,  and  the  latter  presently  absorbed  the  Catonsville 
Hunt,  annexing  their  hounds  and  thus  enabling  the  Patapsco  to  take  the  field 
with  a  goodly  pack  for  its  initial  season. 

Organized  fox-hunting  became  very  popular,  and  the  Hunt  throve  and 

140 


THE    PATAPSCO 

grew  in  size  until,  in  1 900,  their  present  property,  situated  on  the  Washing- 
ton Road,  some  two  miles  out  of  the  town  of  Elkridge,  was  secured.  During 
the  past  eight  years,  the  growth  has  been  gradual  but  steady,  and  now  there 
is  a  comfortable  clubhouse,  Hunt  stabling  for  fourteen  horses,  a  cottage  for 
the  kennel  huntsman  and  excellent  kennels,  where  the  twenty  couples  of 
American  hounds  of  which  the  pack  consists  are  lodged. 

Mr.  Dorsey  M.  Williams  was  elected  M.  F.  H.  on  the  organization  of 
the  Hunt  and  has  held  that  office  ever  since.  Being  a  large  landowner  and 
farmer  himself,  the  Master  is  in  close  sympathy  and  touch  with  the  land- 
owners of  the  county,  and  the  result  is  that  there  is  not  a  farm  on  which 
hounds  are  not  welcome  during  the  hunting  season.  Like  many  other  Hunts 
in  the  south,  the  Patapsco  enjoys  the  great  advantage  of  being  situated  in  a 
country  where  the  inhabitants  have  been  fox-hunters  since  early  colonial 
days.  Hence  it  is  not  strange  that  many  of  the  farmers  should  belong  to 
the  Hunt  and  attend  the  meets  in  the  neighborhood  whenever  they  can  spare 
time  and  a  mount. 

The  Master  is  thus  relieved  from  the  necessity  of  educating  them,  as 
many  of  his  northern  confreres  are  obliged  to  do,  and  is  assisted  in  the  pres- 
ervation of  the  foxes  themselves ;  a  distinct  advantage  in  two  important  es- 
sentials to  the  sport.  It  follows  that  foxes  are  plentiful,  and  the  Patapsco 
hounds  have  few  blank  days. 

The  country  is  what  is  usually  known  as  rolling,  and  although  along  the 
Patapsco  River  the  going  is  pretty  rough,  most  of  it  is  over  a  good,  grazing 
country.  The  coverts  are  large  as  a  rule,  but  usually  intersected  by  numer- 
ous rides,  so  that  when  a  fox  breaks,  one  is  enabled  to  reach  the  open 
quickly.  The  mid-county  farmers  engage  largely  in  cattle-grazing,  and  in 
consequence  the  fencing, — which  is  of  every  known  variety,  except  stone 
walls, — is  strong  and  high  and  requires  a  good  bit  of  doing.  A  story  is  told 
by  one  of  the  Patapsco  men,  that  a  stranger  coming  into  the  country  to 
hunt  once  was  heard  to  remark  after  a  day's  sport,  that  the  farmers  of 
Howard  County  must  "  build  their  fences  to  stop  eagles  I " 

The  lower  part  of  the  county  has  a  sandy  soil  and  affords  good  going  in 
mid-wanter,  when  all  other  portions  of  the  country  are  frozen  solid;  but  the 

141 


THE    PATAPSCO 

hunting  there  is  not  so  interesting  as  in  the  mid-county,  since  the  land- 
owners— who  raise  no  stock,  but  use  their  land  entirely  for  truck  fanning — 
build  very  little  fencing. 

As  Howard  County  embraces  every  possible  type  of  hunting  country,  it 
is  hard  to  specify  any  particular  type  of  horse  which  is  best  suited  to  it. 
Many  of  the  Field  ride  half-breds,  and  in  the  trappy  portions  of  the  country 
where  the  enclosures  are  cramped,  they  seem  to  have  a  little  the  better  of 
it.  There  is,  however,  a  large  contingent  of  "first-flighters"  who  will  ride 
nothing  but  thoroughbreds,  and  when  a  strong  mid-county  fox  gives  the 
pack  a  good  burst  over  the  grass  v«th  its  clean  timber  fences,  they  are  sure 
to  be  in  the  lead. 

And  now  a  word  as  to  the  hounds.  To  quote  from  Major  Wadsworth's 
"Bible"; — "A  Master  is  supposed,  by  courtesy,  to  know  more  about  his 
oviTi  hounds  than  outsiders;"  —  Mr.  Williams  has  been  too  busy  to  tell  us  of 
his  hounds,  but  the  Hunt  Secretary,  Mr.  Rowland  C.  West,  has  been  kmd 
enough  to  do  so,  and  as  his  remarks  are  far  more  mteresting  than  anythmg 
which  the  authors  of  this  volume  could  write,  they  are  given  in  full,  as 
follows: 

"  The  original  pack  owned  by  the  Club  was  formed  from  hounds  picked 
up  in  small  lots  all  over  the  county.  Nearly  all  the  gentlemen  who  organized 
the  Club  owned  hounds  before  it  was  formed,  and  turned  them  over  to  the 
general  pack  after  the  kennels  on  Overbrook  Farm  were  built. 

"From  the  Catonsville  Hunt  we  acquired  seven  and  a  half  couples,  among 
them  a  bitch  called  '  Beulah,'  bred  by  Mr.  Hardy  of  Howard  County,  and 
given  by  him  to  Mr.  Hanson,  the  M.  F.  H.  of  the  Catonsville  Hunt.  Mr. 
Hardy  claimed  that  this  bitch  was  descended  directly  from  the  famous  old 
July  strain,  and  she  has  certainly  proved  that  she  is  '  bred  in  the  purple.* 
Being  a  two-season  hunter  when  she  came  to  us  in  1 898,  she  has  hunted 
through  every  season  up  to  that  of  1 906-7,  and  although  bred  every  year 
since  reaching  the  age  of  five,  has  never,  so  far  as  I  can  find  out,  whelped  a 
bad  puppy.  Old  grandma  'Beulah*  can  be  depended  on  to  produce  a  litter 
every  spring,  all  of  whom  are  good  enough  to  put  on  in  the  next  year's  entry. 

"  We  caimot  be  said  to  have  had  really  good  success  in  breeding,  yet  we 

142 


THE    PATAPSCO 

were  very  fortunate  in  1 907  and  shall  have  about  eleven  couples  of  puppies 
come  in  from  walk  for  our  annual  Puppy  Show  in  June  of  this  year  ( 1 908). 
In  1 906,  we  had  no  luck  at  all,  for  during  November  distemper  broke  out 
in  the  kennels  and  we  lost  all  our  best  hounds,  reducing  our  pack  from  twenty- 
five  couples  to  six  and  a  half  couples,  so  that,  had  it  not  been  for  the  sports- 
manlike assistance  of  Mr.  Redmond  C.  Stewart,  M.  F.  H.  of  the  Green 
Spring  Valley  Hunt,  who  kindly  came  to  our  rescue  vn\h  the  loan  of  four- 
teen couples  from  his  pack,  we  should  have  been  in  a  bad  way.  These 
hounds  were  returned  at  the  close  of  the  season,  except  one  couple  which 
Mr.  Stewart  sold  to  us.  In  1 905,  we  bred  twelve  bitches  and  lost  every 
puppy  whelped,  while  both  the  G.  S.  V.  and  the  Elkridge  Hunts  had  the 
same  luck. 

"  The  pack  we  lost  was  the  levelest  we  have  ever  had,  being  almost  all 
marked  alike,  wdth  black  saddles,  tan  heads,  white  throats  and  tips  to  their 
sterns  and  all  big,  strong,  upstanding  hounds  and  as  fast  as  lightning.  It  will 
be  some  time  before  we  can  produce  their  equals,  but  have  great  hopes  for 
the  young  entry  of  1 908." 


143 


The  Piedmont  Hunt 

DISTINCTIVE  UNIFORM Steel  gray  coat,  black  velvet  collar 

EVENING  DRESS Steel  gray  coat,  black  coUar 

MASTER R.  Hunter  Dulany,  Esq. 

HUNTSMAN -  Claude  Hatcher 

HOUNDS  ^  '^   couples,  English  and 

(  American,  hunted  together 

KENNELS — -"Grafton  Hall,"  Upperville,  Va. 

POST-OFFICE Upperville.  Va. 

DAYS  OF  MEETING — — - —  Wednesday  and  Saturday 

LENGTH  OF  SEASON October  1st  to  April  1st 

LOUDOUN  and  Fauquier  Counties,  Virginia,  which  include 
pretty  much  all  the  territory  bordered  on  one  side  by  the  Blue 
Ridge  Mountains,  on  another  by  the  Potomac  River,  on  a  third 
by  the  Bull  Run  Mountains,  and  on  the  fourth  by  Albemarle  County,  com- 
prise what  is  the  best  natural  fox-hunting  territory  in  the  United  States  to- 
day. In  this  area,  at  present,  there  are  four  Hunts  which  are  recognized  by 
the  National  Steeplechase  and  Hunt  Association — the  Loudoun  County, 
the  Orange  County,  the  Middleburg,  and  the  Piedmont.  Of  these  four  the 
Piedmont  is  the  oldest  by  many  years ;  having  sprung  from  a  private 
pack  owned  and  maintained  by  the  late  Col.  Richard  Hunter  Dulany  of 
"Wellboume,"  who  may  be  aptly  called  the  father  of  fox-hunting  in  the 
Piedmont  Valley.  Colonel  Dulany,  who  died  in  1906,  had  kept  hounds 
since  1870,  and  toward  the  end  of  his  life,  being  too  old  to  undertake 
their  active  management,  relinquished  the  Mastership  to  his  son,  R.  Hunter 
Dulany,  Esq.,  of  "Grafton  Hall,"  although  it  was  always  to  the  old  Col- 
onel that  the  landowners  came  to  pay  their  respects  at  the  beginning  of  the 
season. 

In    1905,  Mr.  Harry  W.  Smith  of  Worcester,  Mass.,   M.  F.  H.  of 

144 


"Jti-- 


\ 


COLONEL  RICHARD  HUNTER  DULANY,   LATE  MASTER 


THE    PIEDMONT 

the  Grafton  Hounds,  who  had  done  a  good  deal  of  hunting  with  Mr. 
Dulany  in  Virginia,  was  elected  Master,  a  position  which  he  held  for 
only  five  months,  when  the  title  again  reverted  to  the  Dulany  family.  It 
was  during  this  period  that  the  English-American  foxhound  match  was 
held,  and  at  that  time  the  Piedmont  country  was  hunted  by  the  Grafton 
Hounds.  In  the  following  season,  Mr.  Dulany,  not  caring  to  continue  the 
active  Mastership,  owdng  to  his  father's  death,  Mr.  John  R.  Townsend, 
M.  F.  H.  of  the  Orange  County,  who  at  that  time  was  hunting  the  Middle- 
burg  country,  as  well  as  his  own  at  the  Plains,  Va.,  applied  for  the  privilege 
of  hunting  the  country  jointly  with  Mr.  Dulany  and,  his  application  being 
granted,  he  did  so  during  the  seasons  of  1 906  and  1 907.  At  the  present 
time  the  Piedmont  hounds  are  at  "  Grafton  Hall,"  and  it  is  to  be  hoped, 
at  any  rate,  that  Mr.  Dulany  wdll  now  continue  to  keep  hounds  himself  again, 
and  that  the  title  of  M.  F.  H.  will  never  for  long  leave  the  Dulany  family. 

The  country,  as  has  been  said,  is  one  of  the  best  in  the  United  States, 
differing  very  little  from  that  of  the  Loudoun  County  Hunt,  which  it  ad- 
joins, except  that  stone  walls  replace  the  post-and-rails  in  many  places.  Of 
course,  in  a  country  in  which  there  are  so  many  rocky  cliffs  as  there  are 
along  the  borders  of  Goose  Creek,  which  runs  through  the  country,  all 
earth-stopping  is  labor  in  vain,  and  were  it  not  for  the  sportsmanlike  nature 
of  the  foxes,  there  would  be  many  short  runs ;  but  for  some  inexplicable 
reason,  the  foxes  in  northern  Virginia  decline  to  go  to  ground  until  they  have 
led  hounds  a  long  chase;  oftentimes  drawing  it  so  fine  that  they  are  unable 
to  save  their  brushes.  Many  of  the  farmers  join  in  the  sport,  while  the 
hospitality  of  Virginians  is  well-known  and  visiting  sportsmen  can  always  be 
sure  of  a  warm  welcome  and  a  good  mount  the  next  day. 


145 


The  Portland  Hunt  Club 

DISTINCTIVE  COLLAR - - White 

EVENING  DRESS - Scarlet  coat,  white  collar  and  facings 

MASTER - T.  S.  McGrath.  Esq. 

HUNTSMAN - - The  Master 

HOUNDS       - 1 0  couples,  American 

KENNELS  AND  POST-OFFICE Portland,  Ore. 

DAYS  OF  MEETING _ Two  days  a  week 

LENGTH  OF  SEASON October  1st  to  April  1st 


UP  in  the  northwest  corner  of  the  United  States,  some  three  thou- 
sand miles  from  the  centre  of  the  hunting  communities  of  the 
east,  is  a  most  enthusiastic  group  of  sportsmen,  who  have  formed 
themselves  into  the  Portland  Hunt  Club.  Beginning  in  a  small  way  in  1 900, 
as  a  paper-chase  organization,  they  have  progressed  gradually  under  the 
leadership  of  Mr.  T.  S.  McGrath,  who  is  an  ardent  horseman,  until  they 
have  now  excellent  stables  and  plans  for  a  clubhouse,  which  will  shortly  be 
completed.  Of  course,  fox-hunting  as  easterners  know  it,  is  an  absolutely 
new  sport  in  the  west,  and  Mr.  McGrath  deserves  a  tremendous  amount  of 
credit  for  the  enthusiasm  and  singleness  of  purpose  with  which  he  has  stuck 
to  his  project. 

In  1 907,  some  American  hounds  were  procured,  —  cross-country  riding 
up  to  that  time  having  taken  merely  the  form  of  paper-chases.  These 
hounds,  —  which  were  used  for  drag-hunting,  —  were  not  entirely  satis- 
factory, nor  did  this  form  of  sport  appeal  to  the  members  of  the  Club ; 
accordingly  in  1 908,  a  Horse  Show  was  held  for  the  purpose  of  raising 
sufficient  funds  with  which  to  build  stables,  kennels  and  a  clubhouse,  and  to 
procure  a  really  good  pack  for  the  purpose  of  hunting  the  foxes  with  which 
the  country  abounds.    Endless  pains  were  taken  to  make  this  show  a  success 

M6 


T.   S.    MCGRATU,    ESQ.,    M.F.H. 


THE    PORTLAND 

and  although  the  financial  crisis  of  1908  hurt  the  enterprise  a  great  deal, 
Mr.  McGrath  and  his  associates  stuck  to  it  and  made  it  come  out  even. 
It  is  now  proposed  to  make  this  Horse  Show  an  annual  event  and  the  amount 
of  support  given  to  it  merely  illustrates  the  fact  that  the  Pacific  slope  is 
about  ready  for  this  sort  of  thing. 

At  the  present  writing,  the  hounds  in  the  possession  of  the  Club  do  not 
amount  to  much,  but,  as  has  been  said,  these  will  shortly  be  replaced  by  a 
larger  and  better  pack.  The  membership  is  now  over  one  hundred  and 
twenty-five  active  members  and  the  Field  rarely  numbers  less  than  thirty, 
with  a  goodly  percentage  of  ladies.  The  country  is  absolutely  different  from 
any  other  in  America,  and  consists,  for  the  most  part,  of  level  but  rather 
rough  pasture  land,  portions  of  which  are  heavily  timbered.  Mr.  McGrath, 
himself,  describes  his  country  as  follows:  "Our  stiff  est  jumps  here  are  fallen 
trees,  and  to  realize  what  I  mean  it  is  necessary  to  see  them.  Over  these 
obstacles  one  gets  jumps  varying  anywhere  from  two  to  eight  feet  in  height. 
Of  course  we  have  no  horses  here  which  can  jump  eight  feet,  but  we  clear 
the  trunks,  —  usually  four  to  five  feet  high, — and  crash  through  the  branches 
as  best  we  can.  The  members  are  very  keen  and  the  other  day  we  had  a 
stiff  run  through  which  thirty-six  of  them  rode  all  the  way. 

"  Out  here  we  ride  thoroughbreds  a  great  deal  and,  personally,  1  prefer  a 
level-headed  thoroughbred  to  any  other  horse  in  the  world.  Of  course,  I 
have  had  some  which  were  not  much  good,  but  on  the  whole  they  exactly 
suit  me.  Our  people  also  hunt  half  and  three-quarter  bred  horses,  the  sire 
being  always  clean-bred  and  the  dam  a  range  mare  or  a  mare  with  more  or 
less  hot  blood.  At  present,  I  have  a  little  horse,  about  three-quarter  bred, 
who,  when  he  came  to  me,  had  very  bad  manners  and  would  not  jump  at 
all ;  but  he  had  a  world  of  endurance  and  plenty  of  speed  and  now  there  is 
no  obstacle  big  enough  to  prevent  him  from  trying." 

O  ye  thrusters  of  the  eastern  hunting  countries,  remember  the  unbreakable 
character  of  these  obstacles  in  the  Portland  Hunt  country,  and  respectfully 
salute  the  western  sportsmen  who  ride  at  them ! 


147 


The  Portsmouth  Hunt 


DISTINCTIVE  UNIFORM Steel  gray,  black  velvet  coUar 

silver  Hunt  buttons 

MASTER - Arthur  Cowton  Heffenger.  M.  D. 

HON.  HUNTSMAN Charles  P.  Heffenger.  Esq. 

WHIPPER-IN - Jeremiah  Casey 

HOUNDS 1 0  couples.  American 

KENNELS  AND  POST-OFFICE Portsmouth.  N.  H. 

DAYS  OF  MEETING \  Two  days  a  week  usually 

(  Wednesday  and  Saturday 

LENGTH   OF   SEASON \  September  !  St  to  January  1st 

(  March  I  St  to  May  I  st 


ONE  of  the  strongest  supporters  of  the  American  hound  in  the 
east  is  Dr.  Arthur  Cowton  Heffenger  of  Portsmouth,  New 
Hampshire.  A  Virginian  by  birth  and  educated  for  the  United 
States  Navy  at  Annapolis,  Maryland,  he  acquired  his  love  of  fox-hunting 
during  his  early  days  in  the  south  and  retained  this  in  spite  of  some  years' 
service  in  the  Navy ;  so  that  when  he  settled  in  Portsmouth,  he  promptly  set 
about  following  his  favorite  sport  in  that  part  of  the  United  States,  which  is 
hardly  of  such  a  character  as  to  offer,  at  first  glance,  much  encouragement  to 
a  riding  man. 

The  Portsmouth  Hunt  was  founded  in  1885,  and  Dr.  Heffenger  has 
been  Master  throughout  its  history,  and  has  hunted  the  hounds,  which  he  owTis, 
twice  a  week  during  the  season,  for  twenty-three  years.  This  season  lasts 
from  September  to  January,  and  from  March  to  May,  and  there  are  no 
regular  days,  hounds  going  out  when  conditions  are  most  suitable.  Some 
hunting  is  also  done  during  August,  September  and  May,  at  night.  The 
country  is  flat  or  gently  rolling,  but  very  cramped  and  rough,  the  fields  being 
small,  with  many  stone  walls,  and  about  half  the  territory  is  wooded  or  cov- 

148 


DR.   ARTHUR  COWTON  HEFFENGER,  M.F.H. 


j4         '  '^^S^t^SS 

MASTER  CHARLES  P.  HEFtENoER,  HuN.  WHIPPER-IN 


TWO  COUPLES  OF  THE  PORTSMOUTU  HOUNDS 


THE    PORTSMOUTH 

ered  by  swamps.  Foxes  double  much,  and  as  a  large  portion  of  the  coun- 
try is  unrideable,  one  has  to  ride  after,  or  to  the  hounds,  rather  than  with 
them ;  so  that  a  clever,  quiet  horse  is  best  suited  to  the  work,  as  much 
trappy  jumping  has  to  be  done.  It  often  happens  that  a  horse  must  push 
his  way  through  thick  alders  and  briers  and  buck  over  a  good-sized  wall 
into  a  maze  of  bushes.  Thus,  it  goes  without  saying  that  a  horse  to  hunt 
this  country  should  be  a  born  leader  and  go  fearlessly  where  he  is  headed, 
whether  in  moonlight  or  sunshine. 

The  Virginia  and  Maryland  horses,  clean  or  half-bred,  seem  to  negoti- 
ate the  New  England  territory  with  more  cleverness  and  satisfaction  than 
those  from  other  parts  of  the  country,  or  England ;  and  the  character  and 
temper  of  the  horse  seem  to  have  more  to  do  with  his  success  here  than 
the  amount  of  hot  blood  he  has.  It  will  be  seen  that  a  horse  really  ideal 
for  this  country  is  most  likely  to  possess  all-round  useful  qualities,  a  matter 
of  much  moment  to  the  average  New  England  hunting  man,  many  of  whom 
do  not  feel  able  to  keep  a  horse  for  hunting  alone. 

The  Portsmouth  hounds  are  bred,  says  Dr.  Heffenger,  "  as  near  the 
American  standard  type  as  possible,  which  practically  means  a  cross  of  the 
racy  strains  of  the  south,  possessing  the  combination  of  nose,  hunting  speed 
and  stamina,  upon  the  best  English  bitches.  About  seventeen  years  ago 
the  breeding  lines  were  started  with '  Joe  Forester,*  an  English-native  cross, 
and  crosses  were  made  between  Walker,  Maupin,  Robinson,  July,  Brooke 
and  Wildgoose  strains,  and  several  of  the  best  English  packs,  resulting  in  a 
hound  of  definite  type  and  form,  which  so  far  has  given  the  best  sport  in 
hunting  the  New  England  fox  over  this  cramped  and  rugged  country." 

If  the  scope  of  this  volume  permitted,  it  would  be  mteresting  to  have  Dr. 
Heffenger's  opinion  in  detail,  as  he  believes  that  in  order  to  produce  the 
best  results  it  is  necessary  to  use  a  very  large  infusion  of  American  blood, 
and  this  is  shown  very  clearly  in  such  hounds  as  he  brings  to  the  annual 
foxhound  shows.  That  his  hounds  give  good  sport  in  the  kind  of  country 
they  hunt,  and  in  the  way  he  desires,  is  unquestionable ;  but  that  they  breed 
to  a  type,  or  that  any  American  hounds  breed  to  as  distinct  a  type  as  the 
English  hound,  we  seriously  doubt. 

149 


The  Radnor  Hunt 


DISTINCTIVE  UNIFORM   Brown  coat,  light  gray  collar.  Hunt  buttons 

EVENING  DRESS Scarlet  coat,  light  gray  collar  and  facings 

MASTER W.  Hinckle  Smith,  Esq. 

SECRETARY Harry  W.  Harrison,  Esq. 

HUNTSMAN - WUl  Davis 

WHIPPER-IN - - - - George  Donnon 

HOUNDS 40  couples,  American 

KENNELS - 3  miles  south  of  Bryn  Mawr,  Pa. 

POST-OFFICE - Bryn  Mawr,  Pa. 

DAYS  OF  MEETING Tuesday,  Thursday,  Saturday,  and  aU  holidays 

LENGTH  OF  SEASON October  15th  to  March  15th 

UNDOUBTEDLY  the  largest  and  most  widely  known  organiza- 
tion of  its  kind  m  the  neighborhood  of  Philadelphia  is  the  Rad- 
nor Hunt.  It  is  also  next  to  the  oldest,  being  antedated  only  by 
the  Rose  Tree  Fox  Hunting  Club.  As  now  organized,  it  had  its  origin  in 
a  pack  of  hounds  kept  for  many  years  at  the  old  Pugh  farm,  near  the 
present  kennels,  by  one  of  Pennsylvania's  sterling  old  Quaker  farmer  sports- 
men, Thomas  Mather  (no  relation  to  the  later  M.  F.  H.). 

Messrs.  James  Rawle  and  Horace  and  Archibald  Montgomery,  who  resided 
in  the  neighborhood,  started  hunting  with  Mather's  hounds  about  1 880  and 
they  in  time  introduced  some  of  their  friends,  —  Messrs.  Cooper  Smith,  R. 
E.  Hastings,  Maskell  Ewing,  Theodore  Justice,  Edmund  H.  McCullough, 
Edward  F.  Beale,  Carroll  Smythe,  Charltan  Yarnall,  C.  E.  Mather  and 
others,  —  and  as  these  things  so  often  do  under  happy  circumstances,  the  sport 
grew  in  favor  with  these  men  until  they  became  regular  in  their  attendance 
with  the  hounds,  occasionally  helping  with  the  expenses,  then  becoming 
regular  contributors,  and  finally,  at  Mr.  Rawle's  suggestion,  the  present  home 

150 


W.   HINCKLE  SMITH,    ESQ.,    M.F.H.    I907- 


THE    RADNOR 

was  purchased,  the  Club  organized,  and  very  primitive  kennels  erected.  Mr. 
James  Rawle  was  elected  President,  Horace  Montgomery  first  Master,  and 
John  Mather,  son  of  the  former  owner  of  the  pack,  was  employed  as  hunts- 
man. While  the  pack  was  enlarged  and  kenneled,  no  change  in  the  method 
of  hunting,  handling  or  breeding  was  made  during  this  regime,  which  lasted 
until  1887.  A  complete  re-organization  then  took  place,  Mr.  A.  J.  Cassatt 
being  elected  President  and  Mr.  C.  E.  Mather  M.  F.  H.;  Mr.  Charltan 
Yarnall  succeeding  Mr.  Herbert  Lycett  as  Secretary. 

Mr.  A.  J.  Cassatt  contmued  as  President  until  his  death  m  1906,  when 
he  was  succeeded  by  Mr.  Rudolph  Ellis,  the  present  incumbent.  Mr. 
Charltan  Yarnall  was  succeeded  as  Secretary  by  Mr.  J.  R.  Valentine,  followed 
in  turn  by  Mr.  Henry  Geyelin,  Mr.  W.  S.  Ellis,  and  the  present  Secretary, 
Mr.  H.  W.  Harrison. 

Mr.  Mather  hunted  the  American  hounds,  which  he  found  there  at  the 
time  of  his  election  as  M.  F.  H.,  for  several  years,  and  showed  satisfactory 
sport  v«th  them.  The  pack  consisted  of  sixteen  and  one-half  couples,  of  the 
usual  uneven  and  undisciplined  character  found  among  the  numerous  packs 
in  Pennsylvania,  and  although  new  blood  was  introduced,  no  serious  attempt 
was  made  to  do  much  with  them  for  several  years,  except  to  keep  the  pack 
up  to  a  strength  equal  to  that  found  at  the  start,  and  to  have  hounds  which 
would  hunt  and  run  the  line  of  a  fox  well.  In  these  early  days  the  hounds, 
with  true  American  independence,  scorned  all  discipline.  However,  they 
answered  their  purpose,  and  many  a  pleasant  day  was  spent  over  the  hills 
and  dales  of  the  Radnor  country  with  them,  until  misfortune  in  the  shape 
of  rabies  appeared,  and  practically  the  whole  pack  was  destroyed. 

It  was  in  a  measure  to  replace  this  loss  that  the  Master  began  the  importa- 
tion of  English  hounds,  a  move  which  was  to  lead  ultimately  to  the  present 
splendid  pack  of  half-bred  hounds,  although  at  first  the  nucleus  remained 
American.  Mr.  Mather  soon  became  so  enthusiastic  in  regard  to  the  merits 
of  the  English  hounds,  that  eventually  he  drafted  out  all  the  American  blood, 
and  for  several  seasons  hunted  the  English  pack  alone,  until,  yielding  to  the 
pressure  of  the  majority  of  his  Field,  he  again  introduced  American  hounds 
into  the  kennels.     Later,  finding  the  sentiment  at  Radnor  very  strong  in 

151 


THE    RADNOR 

their  favor,  rather  than  hunt  the  country  with  an  American  pack,  he  resigned 
in  1901,  and  moved  the  English  pack  to  his  place  on  the  Brandywane, 
where  he  had  for  some  time  been  keeping  a  small  pack  of  his  own. 

The  sentiment  which  influenced  the  Radnor  Field  to  desire  a  change  back 
to  the  American  hound,  after  several  years  of  trial  of  the  English  hounds, 
was  the  apparent  inability  of  the  latter  to  furnish  sport  on  cold,  dry  days, 
and  their  lack  of  voice,  making  it  very  difficult  for  the  Field  to  get  to  them 
should  they  be  thrown  out  in  their  broken  country. 

Mr.  Mather  left  the  American  pack,  on  his  retirement  from  office,  taking 
the  English  pack,  which  was  his  own  property,  away  with  him.  His  resigna- 
tion was  a  great  loss  to  the  Hunt,  and  his  successor,  Mr.  John  R.  Valentine, 
had  a  difficult  task  to  continue  to  show  as  good  sport  as  his  predecessor. 
He  was,  however,  fully  equal  to  it.  Mr.  Mather  was,  as  has  been  said,  an 
ardent  supporter  of  the  English  hound,  and  although  he  had  always  kept  at 
Radnor  an  American  pack  as  well  as  the  English  one,  it  was  the  latter  that 
had  been  his  greatest  hobby,  while  Mr.  Valentine  was,  and  still  is,  a  staunch 
believer  in  the  merits  of  American  hounds  for  the  Radnor  country.  He,  how- 
ever, realized  their  shortcomings,  and  promptly  set  to  work  to  correct  them 
as  rapidly  as  possible,  by  crossing  American  dog-hounds  on  carefully  selected 
bitches  from  the  hill  counties  of  England  and  Scotland,  principally  from  the 
Fife  and  the  Blackmore  Vale.  The  American  hounds  were  carefully  selected 
for  nose,  voice,  stamina  and  courage,  and  always  tri-colored.  This  was  done 
in  the  hope  of  getting  a  pack  wath  more  levelness  and  type  than  the  usual 
American  pack  possesses ;  at  the  same  time,  in  no  way  sacrificing  their  won- 
derful nose  and  deep  toned  voice,  so  welcome  to  the  sportsman  who  has 
made  a  wrong  turn,  or  been  left  at  the  covert-side  when  the  hounds  have 
gone  away.  That  this  has  been  accomplished  can  be  doubted  by  no  one  who 
has  been  out  •with  the  Radnor  in  the  last  five  seasons.  They  have  size  and 
substance,  not  so  much  as  the  English,  to  be  sure,  but  enough.  They  are 
fast,  biddable,  and  good  to  look  at,  and  have  as  good  noses  as  pure  Amer- 
ican hounds,  possessing  all  their  voice  as  well. 

The  principal  stallion  hounds  are  "  Leader,"  "  Link "  and  "  Ming,"  the 
former  being  the  sire  of  more  than  half  the  pack.     In  no  case  has  the  Eng- 

152 


THE    RADNOR 

lish  top-cross  been  used,  as  that  has  been  found  unsuccessful,  the  light 
American  bitches  not  mating  well  with  the  heavy  English  dog-hounds. 
During  the  last  year  of  Mr.  Valentine's  Mastership  he  imported  a  Welsh 
hound  with  the  idea  of  breeding  him  to  the  half-bred  bitches,  and  in  this 
way  still  further  improving  their  stamina ;  also  v«th  the  idea  of  having  the 
Welsh  blood  stiffen  their  coats.  The  few  puppies  entered  this  year  bid  fair 
to  fulfil  his  expectations  without  in  any  way  impairing  the  two  great  essen- 
tials, viz:  nose  and  voice. 

One  of  the  authors,  who  was  lucky  enough  to  enjoy  a  most  excellent 
day's  sport  with  the  Radnor  during  Mr.  Valentine's  Mastership,  gives  his 
recollections  as  follows,  quoted  from  a  letter  to  a  friend  at  the  time : 

"Philadelphia,  February  10th,  1904. 

"Dear  C. — I  went  out  with  the  Radnor  yesterday;  queerest  day  for  hunt- 
ing I  ever  saw,  would  not  have  taken  hounds  out  of  kennels  at  home;  quite 
cold  and,  although  the  sun  had  thawed  the  top  of  the  ground,  it  was  as 
greasy  as  could  be.  Went  out  in  the  early  morning  train  vsath  V  — M  — , 
who  very  kindly  offered  me  a  mount, — to  Bryn  Mawr  station  some  half 
hour  or  so  from  town,  and  drove  from  there  to  the  kennels  about  three 
miles  away.  I  said  to  V  — '  Do  you  mean  to  say  they  will  hunt  today  ?  ' 
'  Yes,'  he  said,  '  Why  not  ? '  I  remarked  that  it  was  his  horse  and  that 
if  he'd  risk  its  legs  I'd  gladly  risk  my  neck.  At  the  clubhouse,  near  which 
are  the  kennels  and  stables,  we  found  our  horses, —  a  beautiful  little  Irish 
mare  for  me  and  a  big  clean-bred  colt  for  him,  —  and  as  hounds  were  to 
meet  some  three  miles  away,  we  promptly  jogged  on. 

"The  meet  was  in  a  little  country  village  and  there  was  a  good  Field  out, 
perhaps  forty,  fully  half  of  them  farmers;  most  of  the  latter  mounted  on 
businesslike  looking  cocktails ;  wath  a  good  many  of  the  members  riding 
clean-breds.  Hounds  came  up  promptly  at  eleven,  and  a  most  workmanhke 
looking  lot  they  are  too,  not  much  to  look  at,  though  1  must  say  I  like  them 
better  than  most  Americans  I've  seen.  The  Hunt  staff  were  beautifully 
turned  out,  all  on  chestnuts,  as  Valentine  has  a  leaning  that  way.  You  know 
they  wear  brown  here  instead  of  scarlet ;  I  don't  know  why  exactly, — 
some  local  prejudice,  I  believe, — but  they  all  looked  smart  and  ready  for  busi- 

153 


THE    RADNOR 

ness.  Valentine  was  away  and  Mr.  David  Sharpe  was  acting  M.  F.  H., 
carrying  the  horn  himself  with  a  couple  of  professional  whippers-in  and  one 
amateur,  Mr.  Harden.  Hounds  moved  off  promptly  and  began  drawing 
along  the  base  of  a  long  wooded  range  of  hills.  They  were  under  absolute 
control  and  although  working  vsader  than  any  English  hounds  I've  ever  seen, 
they  seemed  to  be  perfectly  biddable  and  were  handled  m  much  the  same 
manner  as  you  would  handle  an  English  pack. 

"We  worked  along  for  perhaps  two  hours  without  finding,  and  then  as 
we  heard  the  Lima  hounds  running  a  mile  or  so  away,  Mr.  Sharpe  moved 
off  to  another  portion  of  the  country.  Hounds  came  to  the  hom  as  well 
as  you  could  ask  for.  Presently,  we  met  Mr.  Mather  with  about  twenty 
couples  of  the  Brandywine,  and  for  the  next  hour  both  packs  worked 
together,  the  two  huntsmen  riding  side  by  side.  In  drawing,  there  was 
very  little  to  choose  between  the  two  lots,  both  of  them  working  eagerly 
and  well. 

"At  last  we  found;  the  fox  was  holloaed  away  by  one  of  the  Brandywine 
whips  and  away  we  all  went.  I  don't  know  which  hounds  found  first, — 
both  claimed  the  honor  and  I  question  if  either  huntsman  knew,  —  anyway, 
both  lots  of  hounds  came  to  the  holloa  on  the  jump  and  a  prettier  sight  I 
never  saw.  Forty-two  couples  in  all,  running  well  and  evenly  together,  and 
here  again  neither  seemed  to  have  the  better  of  it.  Once  fairly  started,  what 
a  gallop  we  did  have !  Scent  breast-high,  hounds  running  like  blazes  and  just 
screeching  at  him.  The  going  was  something  appalling,  as  greasy  and  slip- 
pery as  possible,  and  as  I  rode  at  the  first  fence,  —  and  let  me  tell  you  the 
fences  in  this  country  are  nothing  to  jeer  at,  —  I  felt  as  'Brooksby'  did  in 
'The  Best  of  the  Fun';  I  wondered  who  would  ride  the  old  mare  at  home 
in  Lincoln.  But  the  honor  of  Middlesex  was  at  stake,  so  at  it  we  went  and 
the  little  mare  sailed  over  it  as  clean  as  a  whistle.  By  jingo!  it  was  grand 
for  the  next  half  hour,  the  Brandywine  huntsman,  Picton,  and  I  side  by  side, 
—  he  with  a  monocle  in  his  eye,  —  though  how  he  keeps  it  there  Heaven 
only  knows.  Presently  we  came  to  a  brook  or,  rather,  a  small  creek.  It  was 
half  frozen  over,  but  hounds  kept  on,  so  in  we  went,  horses  splashing  the  icy 
water  all  over  us,  into  a  little  covert  on  the  other  side,  where  hounds  suddenly 

154 


THE    RADNOR 

stopped.  For  an  instant  there  was  silence  and  then  a  sudden  snarling  told 
us  that  'Mr.  Charley'  had  breathed  his  last.  Of  course  Mr.  Sharpe  and 
Picton  both  claimed  that  their  hounds  had  done  the  trick.  Frankly,  I  couldn't 
tell;  neither  could  any  one  else.  It  was  one  of  those  short,  sharp  bursts  with 
no  checks  that  just  'bust*  a  fox,  though  I  wish  there  had  been  checks  so  that 
I  might  have  seen  the  pack  at  work  better.  Miss  Dobson  had  the  brush 
and  Miss  Mather  the  mask,  and  then  we  separated;  Mr.  Mather  to  go 
home  to  his  kennels  and  we  to  the  Radnor  clubhouse  for  a  bite. 

"  After  luncheon,  Mr.  Sharpe  took  me  out  to  the  kennels  to  see  the  hounds, 
of  which  they  have  about  forty  couples ;  some  ten  pure  English  and  the  rest 
cross-bred.  '  Sportsman '  a  Genesee  Valley  hound,  is  their  best  stallion 
and  is  as  fine  a  type  of  English  hound  as  you'd  wish  to  see.  The  majority 
of  the  pack  are  big,  rangy,  light-colored  hounds,  perhaps  twenty-four  inches 
at  the  shoulder,  with  rather  an  American  cast  of  head  and  body,  but  most 
of  them  fairly  straight,  with  good  legs  and  feet  and  lots  of  quality.  They 
impress  me  as  light  all  over,  but  perhaps  they  are  not.  Certainly  they  do 
their  work  well. " 

Such  is  the  impression  the  Radnor  made  in  1 904  on  a  visiting  sportsman. 
Today  they  are  larger,  have  a  good  deal  more  bone  and  show,  in  many 
ways,  a  strong  infusion  of  English  blood.  The  Radnor  dog-hounds  weigh  as 
much,  stand  as  high — if  not  higher — at  the  shoulder,  and  have  as  much 
bone  as  any  English  hounds. 

Will  Davis,  their  present  huntsman,  is  an  Englishman  born  and  bred, 
and  has  hunted  English  hounds  all  his  life,  being  late  huntsman  to  the  Pem- 
brokeshire. He  naturally  had  a  pretty  strong  prejudice  against  American 
hounds  when  he  first  came  to  the  Radnor,  but  he  told  one  of  the  authors 
recently  that  he  was  forced  to  admit  that  the  Radnor  hounds,  as  they  are  to- 
day, are  very  hard  to  beat  in  their  work.  "  When  I  first  took  them,"  he  said, 
"  they  were  wild  as  hawks.  They  began  hunting  when  they  got  ready  and 
left  off  when  they  liked.  But  I  stuck  to  it,  and  presently  their  manners  im- 
proved. Any  hounds  can  be  taught  manners  if  the  poor  brutes  only  know 
what  you  want  them  to  do.  1  got  a  terrier  from  England, — and  a  good  'un, 
—  and  every  time  they  ran  a  fox  to  ground  I  had  him  out  if  it  was  possible. 

155 


THE    RADNOR 

Now  they'll  mark,  —  which  is  more  than  they'd  do  before."  So  much  for 
the  improvement  in  the  work  of  the  Radnor  under  Davis.  It  is  to  be  hoped 
that  he  will  have  equal  success  in  breeding  for  straightness  and  levelness. 

At  Radnor,  only  the  native  fox  is  hunted.  The  season  opens  about 
October  15th  with  cub-hunting  (the  meets  being  scheduled  at  sunrise),  un- 
til about  November  10th,  when  the  regular  hunting  starts  and  continues 
until  the  middle  of  March.  Barring  times  when  the  snow  may  be  too  deep, 
or  the  ground  too  soft  to  gallop  over  without  cutting  up  grass  fields,  the  pack 
is  hunted  regularly  throughout  the  season.  The  Radnor  country  is  rolling, 
with  lots  of  cover,  and  foxes  are,  and  always  have  been  plentiful. 

The  farmers  owning  the  land  hunted  over  are  all  more  or  less  interested 
in  the  sport,  sometimes  joining  in  the  hunts  and  often  appearing  in  the  fields 
and  giving  information  of  the  fox  on  the  line  of  which  the  pack  may  be 
working.  In  1 907,  Mr.  W.  Hmckle  Smith  was  elected  to  the  Mastership  m 
place  of  Mr.  Valentine,  who  had  resigned,  and  it  is  his  hope  and  that  of  the 
Radnor  members  that  they  long  will  continue  to  be  as  interested  in  the  sport, 
and  be  as  good  friends  of  the  Hunt  as  they  are  at  present. 


156 


.n 


:-f  :.'«*■;  ■  .'.yroffljwa 


LE  ROY  ROPER,    ESQ.,   M.F.H. 


*i 


M.  c.  jACKSuN,  Ksy.,  Hon.  huntsman 


The  Riverside  Hunt 


DISTINCTIVE  COLLAR _ - Dark  green 

MASTER - - Le  Roy  Roper.  Esq. 

SECRETARY M.J.  Pegram.  Esq..  Petersburg.  Va. 

HON.  HUNTSMAN  : M.  C.  Jackson.  Esq. 

HON.  WHIPPERSIN - - - \  \^\  ^„?  ,f^'^"°''' ^!5-   ^ 

(  2na,  W.  Roane  Rumn.  Esq. 

HOUNDS - I  6  couples.  American 

KENNELS  AND  POST-OFFICE Petersburg.  Va. 

DAYS  OF  MEETING \  Foxh°unds  every  hunting  day 

(  Draghounds.  Wednesday  and  Saturday 

LENGTH  OF  SEASON October  15th  to  April  15th 


FOX-HUNTING  has  been  carried  on  about  Petersburg,  Vir- 
ginia, in  an  indefinite  sort  of  way  since  the  Revolutionary  War, 
although  for  several  years  after  the  Civil  War  there  was  very  lit- 
tle done.  The  sport  has,  however,  too  strong  a  hold  in  the  south  to  die  out 
completely,  and  there  are  now  five  or  six  packs  of  hounds  within  a  radius  of 
fifteen  miles  of  Petersburg.  Of  these,  the  Riverside  Hunt,  founded  in  1 903, 
and  recognized  by  the  National  Steeplechase  and  Hunt  Association  in  1 907, 
is  perhaps  the  best  known.  Its  founders  are  all  members  of  the  Riverside 
Country  Club  who  are  hunting  men  and  who,  while  they  could  at  any  time 
hunt  with  the  other  packs  in  the  vicinity,  concluded  to  organize  a  Hunt  of 
their  own,  chiefly  within  the  membership  of  the  Country  Club.  Mr.  Duncan 
Wright  was  elected  M.  F.  H.  and  served  until  1906,  when  Mr.  Le  Roy 
Roper,  the  present  Master,  succeeded  him.  The  Hunt  Staff,  which  is  strictly 
non-professional,  is  composed  of  M.  C.  Jackson,  Esq.,  huntsman,  E.  B. 
Sydnor,  Esq.,  1  st  whipper-in,  and  W.  Roane  Ruffin,  Esq.,  2nd  whipper-in. 
The  country  about  Petersburg  abounds  with  foxes,  but  to  the  great  sorrow 

157 


THE    RIVERSIDE 

of  the  members,  they  are  all  of  the  short-running  gray  species,  which  fact, 
although  it  enables  the  hounds  to  kill  often,  thus  keeping  the  pack  well 
blooded,  is  not  productive  of  the  long,  hard  runs  afforded  by  the  stronger  red 
variety. 

There  are  two  packs  at  Riverside,  one  used  for  drag-hunting  only,  going 
out  on  Wednesdays  and  Saturdays,  and  the  regular  foxhound  pack  which 
goes  out  on  every  hunting  day  through  the  season.  The  hounds  are  Amer- 
ican, many  of  them  bred  in  the  kennels,  and  all  of  them  Virginia-bred  with- 
out any  strain  of  English  blood,  the  Master  claiming  that  his  hounds  are 
faster,  give  a  great  deal  more  tongue,  and  when  carefully  broken  are  as  easily 
controlled  in  the  field  as  those  of  English  blood. 

The  landowners,  who  are  very  much  harassed  by  the  foxes  and  most  of 
them  also  keen  hunting  men,  are  not  only  willing  but  anxious  to  have  the 
hounds  on  their  land  and  usually  join  in.  The  country  is  open,  with  very 
little  wire  and  clean  negotiable  fences.  Any  good  hunter  is  suited  to  it,  and 
the  preference  of  the  members  is  about  evenly  divided  between  half-  and 
thorough-bred  horses. 


158 


The  Rose  Tree  Fox  Hunting  Club 


DISTINCTIVE  COLLAR - - Old  rose 

EVENING  DRESS Scarlet  coat,  old  rose  facings 

MASTER - - Simon  Delbert,  Esq. 

SECRETARY William  H.  Corlies.  Esq.,  Media,  Pa. 

HON.  HUNTSMAN - - _ Samuel  Pinkerton,  Esq. 

HON.  WHIPPERS-IN — - — \   '"'  ^-  ^P^"^^  Haiyey.  Esq. 

(  2nd,  A.  L.  Hawkins,  Esq. 

HOUNDS - - - 25  couples,  American 

KENNELS  AND  POST-OFFICE Media,  Pa. 

DAYS  OF  MEETING Monday,  Wednesday,  Thursday  and  Saturday 

LENGTH  OF  SEASON November  1 5th  to  March  17th 


THE  first  organized  Hunt  Club  in  America  was,  it  is  thought, 
the  Brooklyn  Hunt  Club,  mention  of  which  has  been  made  in 
the  article  on  the  Meadow  Brook  Hunt.  The  first  organization, 
however,  of  which  we  have  accurate  records,  is  the  Gloucester  Fox  Hunt- 
ing Club,  the  initial  meeting  of  which  was  held  on  December  1 3th,  1  766, 
in  the  old  Philadelphia  coffee-house,  at  the  northwest  corner  of  Front  and 
Market  streets.  It  was  largely  attended,  the  membership  of  the  Club, 
organized  at  that  meeting,  containing  about  1 25  names,  among  them  such 
well  knowTi  ones  as  Benjamin  Chew,  Charles  and  Thomas  Willing,  James 
Wharton,  Thomas  Mifflin,  Israel  and  Robert  Morris,  John  Cadwalader, 
Richard  Bache,  Col.  Thomas  Heston,  Joseph  Penrose,  Joseph  Bullock, 
John  Dunlap,  Isaac  Cox,  Thomas  Leiper  and  James  Caldwell,  of  Philadel- 
phia ;  and  of  New  Jersey,  Gen.  Wilkinson,  Gen.  Franklin  Davenport,  Capt. 
James  B.  Cooper,  Capt.  Samuel  Whitall,  Col.  Joshua  Howell,  Col.  Thomas 
Robinson,  and  Col.  Benjamin  Flower. 

159 


THE    ROSE    TREE 

Capt.  Samuel  Morris  was  elected  President,  and  it  was  he  and  twenty- 
one  other  members  who  organized  the  First  City  Troop  of  Philadelphia  City 
Cavalry.  Capt.  Morris's  negro  slave,  old  "  Natty,"  served  the  Club  as 
kennelman  and  huntsman  from  1  769  until  the  Revolution.  The  uniform  of 
the  Club,  adopted  in  I  774,  was  a  "dark  brown  cloth  coatee  with  lapelled 
dragoon  pockets,  white  buttons  and  frock  sleeves,  buff  waistcoat  and 
breeches  and  black  velvet  cap."  In  1775,  the  pack  consisted  of  fifteen  and 
a  half  couples  of  hounds  and  in  1  778,  when  the  kennels  were  on  the  Dela- 
ware, near  Gloucester  Point,  of  sixteen  couples.  Just  what  type  these 
hounds  were  it  would  be  very  interesting  to  know,  but  it  seems  probable 
that  they  were  very  similar  to  the  hounds  used  in  England  for  fox-hunting 
at  that  time.  If  this  was  the  case,  it  is  curious  to  note  the  development  in 
the  two  countries,  for  today,  the  Rose  Tree  hounds  are  of  the  so-called 
American  type,  which,  of  course,  is  vastly  different  from  the  existing  English 
type,  and  yet  both  could  probably  trace  back  to  the  same  parent  stock. 
This  old  Club  survived  until  1818  and  existed  fifty-two  years. 

Delaware  and  Chester  counties,  which  were  not  divided  until  1 789, 
comprise  probably  the  longest-hunted  district  in  Pennsylvania.  Men  living 
within  a  few  years  past,  have  told  us  of  fox-hunts  they  witnessed  when  boys 
in  Middletown,  Aston  and  Concord  Townships,  when  Charley  Pennell, 
Nicholas  and  Joseph  Fairlamb,  "Squire"  Baldwin  and  Antony  Baker  were 
noted  hunters,  and  later,  we  learn  of  hunts  from  the  Black  Horse  and  Anvil 
Taverns,  the  latter  in  part  of  the  township  which  is  now  Media.  An  hon- 
orary member  of  the  Rose  Tree  Hunt  also  kept  hounds  many  years  ago  and 
George  W.  Hill,  at  one  time  M.  F.  H.,  began  his  hunting  with  him  about 
1830. 

From  George  E.  Darlington,  the  author  of  a  book  entitled  "  The  Origin  and 
History  of  the  Rose  Tree  Fox  Hunting  Club,"  from  which  has  been  drawTi 
much  of  our  information  regarding  the  Rose  Tree,  we  learn  that  Charles 
Pennell,  who  was  born  about  I  760,  kept  hounds  from  his  earliest  manhood. 

"  We  heard  of  him,"  says  Mr.  Darlington,  "  from  a  gentleman  who  was 
born  in  1  797,  and  who,  when  a  small  boy,  was  watching  with  his  brothers 
the  hounds  running  over  the  hills  on  his  father's  farm  early  one  morning, 

ito 


GENERAL  EDWARD  MORREI.I.,    LATE  MASTER 


THE    ROSE    TREE 

that  Charley  Pennell  came  riding  to  them  on  a  good  young  horse  that  had 
never  hunted  before  and  which  he  put  at  a  low  worm  fence  and  that  the 
horse  refused  to  take  it.  At  Mr.  Pennell's  request,  the  boys  cut  a  stout 
stick  for  him,  and  with  this  persuader  he  drove  his  horse  at  the  fence  again 

and  went  blundering  on  after  the  hounds Few  farmers  objected  to 

hunting  over  their  lands,  and  generally  they  were  fond  of  seeing  the  hunt  and 
hearing  the  hounds  in  full  cry,  and  this  love  of  the  sport  is  illustrated  by  the 
fact  that  a  farmer  named  Jesse  Russell,  living  in  Edgmont  township  and 
whose  farm  contained  a  well  wooded  round-top  called  Hunting  Hill,  a 
favorite  retreat  for  foxes,  when  on  his  death-bed  requested  that  he  should  be 
buried  on  Hunting  Hill,  where  he  could  hear  the  hounds  running.  He  was 
buried  on  the  north  side  of  this  hill,  and  afterward  the  spot  was  adopted 
as  a  family  burying-ground  and  so  still  remains,  with  a  wall  of  native 
stone  around  it,  which  is  fast  going  to  decay,  but  which  some  of  the 
fox-hunting  clubs  of  the  county  propose  to  rebuild  and  put  in  good 
condition."* 

In  the  winter  of  1 852-3,  Mr.  J.  Howard  Lewis  and  Mr.  George  Darling- 
ton began  fox-hunting.  At  that  time  Jim  Burns  and  Ned  Engle  of  Chester, 
John  Mahoney  of  Rockdale,  George  Powell  of  Springfield,  Jones  and 
Hunter  Moore  of  Haverford,  Dan  Abrahams  and  Bill  and  Tom  Crossley 
of  Radnor,  Chandler  Thomas  and  Pratt  and  Washington  Bishop  of  Upper 
Providence,  Bill  Noble  of  Ridley,  Jesse  Hickman  of  Thornbury,  William 
Grant  and  Levis  Speakman,  of  Birmingham,  William  Hannon  of  Aston, 
Osborn  Booth  of  Concord  and  James  Pmkerton  of  Gradyville,  all  kept 
packs  of  hounds,  sometimes  hunting  together  as  a  "  trencher-fed "  pack  and 
sometimes  taking  their  own  hounds  out  for  the  amusement  of  their  friends 
and  themselves.  Messrs.  Lev^as  and  Darlington  had  four  or  five  couples  of 
their  own  which  they  hunted  together  until  the  Rose  Tree  Club  was 
organized  m  1 859  by  the  election  of  J.  Howard  Lewis  as  President,  George 
E.  Darlington  as  Secretary,  and  J.  Morgan  Baker  as  Treasurer.  Every 
member  of  the  Club  was  an  active  and  trained  fox-hunter,  well  qualified  to 
hunt  the  hounds  by  practical  experience,  and  no  Master  of  hounds  or  hunts- 

This  intention  has  been  carried  out.  —  The  authors. 

161 


THE    ROSE    TREE 

man  was  appointed.  A  whipper-in,  Jim  Miller  (colored),  was  employed  to 
bring  back  stray  hounds,  and  was  said  to  be  a  good  and  bold  rider. 

"Those  were  the  days,"  says  Mr.  Darlington,  "when  the  sport  was  truly 
hunting,  and  not  steeplechasing  with  hounds  across  a  country.  The  hunt- 
ing horses  were  not  as  good  then  as  now,  for  they  were  not  blooded  stock, 
but  the  hunters  knew  how  to  save  their  horses'  wind  and  strength  by  never 
forcing  a  jump  unnecessarily,  and  by  taking  some  of  the  work  upon  them- 
selves by  climbing  steep  hills  on  foot,  leading  their  horses  to  the  top." 

On  October  4th,  1 873,  the  Club  was  reorganized.  George  W.  Hill  was 
made  President  and  M.  F.  H.,  Frederick  Fairlamb,  Vice-President,  and 
Samuel  Miller,  Secretary,  while  the  annual  dues  of  the  members  at  this  time 
were  fixed  at  five  dollars.  In  1 877  the  Club  had  a  membership  of  thirty 
active  members  and  fourteen  contributing  members,  and  the  by-laws  pro- 
vided that  membership  should  be  confined  to  residents  of  Delaware  and 
Chester  counties  and  Philadelphia,  and  the  annual  dues  were  increased  to 
ten  dollars,  with  ten  dollars  initiation  fee.  About  this  time,  many  of  the  mem- 
bers kept  horses  exclusively  for  hunting,  and  a  race  meeting  was  instituted  on 
the  old  Rose  Tree  track  with  a  steeplechase  course,  which  took  in  a  portion 
of  the  Bullock  farm  and  in  which  the  jumps  were  mostly  post-and-rail 
fences.  The  residents  of  Delaware  and  Chester  counties  and  the  Philadel- 
phians  took  great  interest  in  the  meeting  and  turned  out  in  goodly  numbers. 

On  November  22nd,  1 88 1 ,  the  Club  was  incorporated  by  the  Honora- 
ble Thomas  J.  Clayton,  President-Judge  of  the  Court  of  Common  Pleas  of 
Delaware  County  (who  afterward  was  a  member  of  the  club  till  the  time  of 
his  death),  under  the  name  of  "  The  Rose  Tree  Fox  Hunting  Club,"  the 
incorporators  being,  —  Fairman  Rogers,  A.  J.  Cassatt,  George  W.  Hill,  J. 
Howard  Lewis,  Henry  E.  Saulnier,  Samuel  C.  Lewis,  Rush  S.  Huidekoper, 
J.  Edward  Famum,  J.  Mitchell  Baker,  Moncure  Robinson,  Jr.,  George  M. 
Lev«s,  William  H.  Corlies  and  George  E.  Darlington.  The  following  of- 
ficers were  elected, —  President  and  M.  F.  H.,  George  W.  Hill;  Vice- 
Presidents,  William  E.  Saulnier  and  J.  Howard  Lewis;  Secretary  and  Treas- 
urer, William  H.  CorHes. 

In  1881,  a  clubhouse  was  erected  under  an  agreement  with  Benjamin 

162 


'll 


GOING  TO  roVKR 


THE    ROSE    TREE 

Rogers,  owner  of  the  property  and  incidentally  of  the  Rose  Tree  Inn ;  and 
George  W.  Hill  and  William  H.  Corlies,  Trustees  for  the  Rose  Tree  Fox 
Hunting  Club,  dated  April  23rd,  1881,  which  stipulated  that  the  Club 
should  have  the  privilege,  at  its  ovm  cost,  to  erect  a  clubhouse  for  its  enjoy- 
ment for  the  term  of  fifteen  years  from  that  day;  at  the  end  of  which  time 
the  house  was  to  become  the  property  of  Mr.  Rogers,  and  the  Club  could 
then  give  it  up  or  become  tenants,  the  Club  reserving  the  right  to  remove 
the  house  at  any  time  during  the  term,  by  paying  to  Mr.  Rogers  the  sum  of 
one  hundred  dollars  for  each  year  his  ground  had  been  occupied  by  it.  The 
most  friendly  relationship  always  existed  between  Mr.  Rogers  and  his  family 
and  the  Club  members,  and  the  suppers  supplied  monthly  at  the  regular 
meeting  nights  were  invariably  satisfactory  to  the  members  and  their  nu- 
merous guests.  The  clubhouse  was  plainly  finished  in  yellow  pine,  the 
lower  story  being  a  banqueting-room  and  the  upper  story  containing  bed- 
rooms for  the  convenience  of  guests. 

In  1905,  some  time  after  the  death  of  Mr.  Rogers,  who  was  affec- 
tionately and  familiarly  knowTi  as  "  Uncle  Benny,"  it  was  decided  to  secure 
more  commodious  quarters.  Largely  through  the  efforts  of  General  Morrell, 
the  large  farm  adjoining  the  old  clubhouse,  on  which  were  situated  an  old 
fashioned  stone  mansion,  and  a  large  barn,  and  out-buildmgs,  was  purchased. 
The  house  was  altered  and  adapted  for  club  purposes,  stabling  accommoda- 
tions increased  and  new  kennels  built. 

Any  history  of  the  Rose  Tree  Hunt  would  be  incomplete  without  a 
sketch  of  Mr.  George  W.  Hill,  who  held  the  Mastership  from  October  1  st, 
1 873,  up  to  the  time  of  his  death  on  March  30th,  1 900.  Mr.  Hill  was 
bom  in  the  old  borough  of  Chester  in  the  year  1 825.  During  his  early  youth 
he  lived  at  Rockdale,  and  when  he  was  about  sixteen  years  old  began  his 
fox-hunting  with  the  late  Mark  Pennell,  who  has  been  previously  mentioned. 
He  hunted  actively  with  the  Rose  Tree  Club  hounds  until  about  two  years 
before  his  death,  when  he  was  badly  disabled  by  a  fall  in  the  hunting-field. 
In  spite  of  this,  however,  he  tried  to  hunt  again  during  the  winter  of  1 898— 
1 899  and,  although  much  shattered  in  health,  took  an  active  interest  in  the 
management  of  the  hounds  until  the  end.     He  was  highly  esteemed  by  all 

163 


THE    ROSE    TREE 

who  knew  him,  and  his  career  as  Master  of  Foxhounds  was  probably  longer 
than  that  of  any  other  man  in  America. 

In  1 874,  Mr.  J.  Edward  Famum,  then  a  member  of  the  Club,  conceived 
the  idea  that  an  infusion  of  English  blood  would  be  of  advantage  to  the  pack 
and  accordingly  imported  three  or  four  couples  of  English  hounds;  but  these 
were  used  only  a  short  time.  The  hounds  which  the  Rose  Tree  Hunt  pur- 
chased originally  were  procured  by  Mr.  Hill  mainly  from  Maryland  and 
Virginia  and  the  pack  has  varied  m  number  from  eight  to  twenty-five 
couples,  there  being  now  about  twenty-five  couples  in  the  kennels,  which  are 
located  a  short  distance  from  the  clubhouse,  near  the  race-track  and  the 
famous  Rose  Tree  Inn.  The  Hunt  continues  to  hold  its  annual  race  meeting 
with  great  success,  until  it  is  now  one  of  the  most  important  amateur  meet- 
ings m  the  country. 

On  Mr.  Hill's  death.  General  Edward  Morrell  was  elected  Master  and 
continued  to  fill  that  office  up  to  the  end  of  the  hunting  season  of  1 906- 
1907,  when  he  was  reluctantly  forced,  on  account  of  the  demands  on  his 
time,  to  relinquish  the  position.  Like  his  predecessors,  he  was  a  great  be- 
liever in  the  American  hound,  holding  that  for  a  rough  country  where  coverts 
are  large  and  hounds  cannot  be  easily  followed,  these  hounds  are  more  use- 
ful than  the  English;  in  fact,  all  the  packs  now  maintained  in  Pennsylvania, 
—  and  there  are  a  great  many, — use  the  native  hound  except  the  Brandy- 
wine,  Mr.  Mather's  private  pack,  a  description  of  which  will  be  found  in 
another  chapter. 

In  1 878,  Wells  Rogers  was  appointed  huntsman  and  filled  that  position 
up  to  1 905,  having  full  charge  of  the  feeding  and  care  of  the  hounds  in 
kennels  and  of  the  hunting  in  the  field.  The  positions  of  whippers-in  have 
been  ably  filled  by  Samuel  McClure  and  Samuel  Pinkerton  for  a  long  time, 
the  latter  succeeding  to  the  office  of  huntsman  on  the  resignation  of  Wells 
Rogers  in  1905. 

Upon  the  retirement  of  General  Morrell,  Mr.  Simon  Delbert,  the  Chair- 
man of  the  Kennel  Committee,  long  a  resident  of  Media,  and  an  active 
member  in  the  hunting  field,  was  elected  as  his  successor.  The  preference 
for  the  American  hound,  rather  than  for  the  English,  is  very  strong,  and  Mr. 

164 


;iik-i>!<-t«L^-'flt. 


THE    ROSE    TREE 

Delbert,  in  deference  to  the  wishes  of  the  Club  at  large,  shows  no  inclination 
to  change  the  old  character  of  the  pack,  which  has  shown  such  good  sport 
to  its  many  followers  for  almost  sixty  years. 

The  friendly  relations  with  the  farmers  have  always  been  carefully  pre- 
served and  every  effort  is  made  to  prevent  riding  over  their  land  when  it  is 
in  a  soft  condition;  while,  of  course,  all  damage  done  by  hounds,  foxes  or 
members  is  promptly  paid  for  by  the  Club.  For  several  years  past  the  hunt- 
ing season  has  been  inaugurated  with  a  Farmers'  breakfast,  at  some  of  which 
as  many  as  two  hundred  landowners  have  been  guests  of  the  club.  These 
breakfasts  are  usually  elaborate  affairs,  and  the  members  of  the  Club  don 
aprons,  wait  upon  their  guests  and  bid  them  welcome.  At  the  conclusion  of 
the  breakfast,  about  mid-day,  gymkhana  races,  games  and  sports  are  held,  in 
which  all  are  contenders. 


165 


The  Shelburne  Hounds 

(MR.  WEBB'S) 

DISTINCTIVE  UNIFORM Scarlet  coat,  black  coUar  and  cuffs 

EVENING  DRESS - Scarlet  coat,  scarlet  facings,  black  collar 

MASTER - J.  Watson  Webb.  Esq. 

FIRST  WHIPPER-IN  AND  KENNEL  HUNTSMAN  -  W.  Hopkins 

HOUNDS - 1 5  couples,  English. 

KENNELS - "  Shelburne  Farms,"  Shelburne,  Vt. 

POST-OFFICE - Shelburne.  Vt. 

DAYS  OF  MEETING ~ Three  days  a  week 

LENGTH  OF  SEASON \  SeP'^'"^'"  'f;°  ^°r""^''  '  ^'^  l 

(  April  I  st  to  May  3Uth,  when  weather  permits 

VERMONT  is  the  northernmost  of   all  the  eastern  states  which 
can  boast  a  recognized  pack  of  foxhounds,  although  there  are 
several  packs  which  have  long  been  maintained  just  over  the 
border,  in  Canada. 

On  the  borders  of  Lake  Champlain,  about  eight  miles  from  Burlington, 
Vt.,  is  situated  "Shelburne  Farms,"  the  great  estate  of  Dr.  W.  Seward 
Webb,  which  comprises  about  four  thousand  acres  of  pasture  land,  culti- 
vated fields  and  wooded  uplands.  The  surrounding  country  is  of  much  the 
same  character  as  Mr.  Webb's  estate  and  is  held  by  a  class  of  landowners 
all  of  whom  are  friendly  to  him  and  some  of  whom  are  interested  in  sport. 

These  are  the  conditions  which  existed  in  1902  when  Mr.  J.  Watson 
Webb,  eldest  son  of  Dr.  Webb,  began  hunting  a  pack  of  beagles  at  "Shel- 
burne Farms, "  and  these  are  the  conditions  which  exist  today.  The  beagles 
sufficed  for  two  seasons  and  then  a  scratch  pack  of  harriers  took  their  place 
in  order  to  get  more  pace.  But  since  these  could  not  fulfil  the  desired  re- 
quirements, they  were  in  turn  replaced,  in  1 904,  by  a  small  importation  of 
six  couples  of  English  foxhounds  from  the  Ledbury  and  other  packs;  and 

166 


I 

I 


THE    SHELBURNE 

now,  by  breeding,  the  pack  has  begun  to  assume  the  proportions  its  young 
Master  wished  for. 

Mr.  Webb  is  a  very  keen  sportsman ;  he  has  done  some  steeplechasing 
and  flat-racing  and  his  horses  have  done  well  at  the  smaller  Hunt  meetings 
at  which  they  have  started.  He  has  from  time  to  time  imported  both 
horses  and  hounds  from  England  and  there  is  every  prospect  that  during  the 
coming  years  the  pack  will  rank  with  the  best  in  the  country.  As  we  all 
know,  given  enthusiasm,  executive  ability,  persistence  and  a  bank  account 
to  correspond  to  these  qualities  and  the  future  of  almost  any  pack  is  safe. 
The  M.  F.  H.  of  the  Shelburne  Hounds  possesses  all  of  these  qualifications, 
the  greatest  of  which,  in  the  opinion  of  the  authors,  is  persistency. 

The  greatest  difficulty  v^th  which  the  Master  has  to  contend,  is  the  iso- 
lation of  his  country  and  the  consequent  lack  of  a  Field.  It  is  discouraging  to 
build  up  a  pack  of  hounds  and  have  them  go  out  day  after  day  wath  no  one 
to  appreciate  their  excellence ;  and  it  is  very  easy,  under  such  conditions,  to 
get  a  little  slack  for  want  of  criticism  and  to  find  one's  pack  going  down 
hill.  Mr.  Webb  has  two  younger  brothers  who  are  quite  keen,  and  what 
with  his  friends  and  theirs  he  has  a  small  Field  part  of  the  time. '  So  far, 
most  of  the  hunting  has  been  after  a  drag,  as  Mr.  Webb's  enforced  absence 
from  home  at  college  has  not  permitted  him  to  pay  much  attention  to  earth- 
stopping,  without  which  good  sport  is  impossible.  The  country,  however, 
compared  with  others  on  this  side  of  the  water,  has  excellent  possibilities  for 
fox-hunting,  and  foxes  abound.  Since  leaving  the  university  he  is  able  to 
devote  more  attention  to  it  and  good  results  are  sure  to  follow.  The  coun- 
try, as  we  have  said,  is  a  most  excellent  "  riding  "  one  and  is  blessed  with 
very  little  wire  as  yet,  fences  being  for  the  most  part  of  the  "  worm " 
variety. 

With  so  enthusiastic  a  Master  it  is  only  a  question  of  time  when  his  dif- 
ficulties will  be  overcome,  and  the  authors  feel  sure  that  the  pleasure  which 
Mr.  Webb  is  deriving  from  his  little  pack  more  than  makes  up  for  the 
troubles  and  worries  of  its  early  days. 


167 


The  Smithtown  Hunt 

MASTER  -      - Clarence  H.  Robbins,  Esq. 

SECRETARY John  Turton.  Esq..  Smithtown,  Long  Island,  N.  Y. 

HUNTSMAN ~ — - - -~ - - - -The  Master 

HON.  WHIPPERS-IN \  1'^^°^^"^  Gilmore,  Jr    Esq. 

(  Znd,  Lawrence  Butler,  Esq. 

HOUNDS - -  1 0  couples,  English 

KENNELS  AND  POST-OFFICE - Smithtown,  Long  Island,  N.  Y. 

DAYS  OF  MEETING - Wednesday  and  Saturday 

LENGTH  OF  SEASON ~ About  four  months,  autumn  and  winter 


LONG  ISLAND  has  always  been  noted  for  its  sportsmen  and  for 
its  sporting  establishments.  Two  of  the  greatest  race-tracks  in 
the  country  are  situated  upon  it,  and  those  who  have  read  the 
chapter  on  the  Meadow  Brook  Hunt  have  noted  that  some  of  the  earliest 
hunting  in  the  United  States  was  upon  its  soil.  Its  area  is  great  enough  to 
allow  room  for  a  dozen  packs  of  hounds, — more  than  there  are  now, — 
and  the  conformation  of  the  country  and  its  fences  are  adapted  to  both  fox- 
and  drag-hunting.  At  Bayside,  L.  I.,  a  pack  of  hounds  had  been  main- 
tained for  some  time,  and  as  the  country  gradually  grew  up  and  became 
more  cramped,  the  followers  of  this  pack  began  to  feel  that  a  more  regular 
organization  was  necessary. 

Accordingly,  in  1 904,  Messrs.  R.  LawTence  Smith,  Marshall  Smith,  Joseph 
Grace,  Russell  Grace,  Devereux  Emmett,  John  Turton,  Winslow  White, 
William  Minot,  Lawrence  Butler,  Robert  Gilmore  and  Henry  Bell  formed 
themselves  into  a  Hunt  Club  to  be  known  as  the  Smithtown  Hunt.  Mr.  R. 
Lawrence  Smith  was  elected  Master  and,  being  a  staunch  believer  in  Amer- 
ican hounds,  bought  twenty  couples  in  the  south  and  brought  them  to  Long 
Island,  where  they  have  been  hunted  during  the  last  three  years.     While 

168 


CLARENCE  H.    ROBBINS,    ESQ.,   M.F.H.    1907- 


THE    SMITHTOWN 

these  hounds  were  found  to  be  good  after  foxes  when  once  they  were 
started,  they  were  so  unmanageable  that  a  change  was  decided  upon.  For 
this  reason  Mr.  Clarence  Robbins,  who  had  been  elected  to  the  Mastership 
on  the  resignation  of  Mr.  Smith  at  the  close  of  the  season  of  1 907,  brought 
over  ten  couples  of  hounds  from  England,  and  intends  in  time  to  breed  from 
these  a  good-sized  pack  of  his  own.  A  few  couples  of  American  hounds 
are  still  kept,  as  there  are  some  members  of  the  Hunt  who  are  under  the 
impression  that  they  are  better  for  fox-hunting  than  their  imported  cousins. 

The  country  over  which  the  Smithtown  rides  is  typical  of  Long  Island ; 
rolling,  and  in  places  quite  hilly,  the  high  land  is  mostly  covered  with  scrub 
oaks,  dwarf  pines  and  thick  underbrush,  and  these  coverts,  which  are  very 
large  in  extent,  are  well  supplied  wath  foxes.  In  between  the  hills  are  a 
great  many  grass  fields,  the  enclosures  being  fair  sized,  and  bounded  with 
clean  post-and-rails,  affording  the  best  of  galloping  and  jumping.  Unluckily 
these  large  areas  of  scrub  woodland  in  which  the  foxes  lie  are  too  great  in 
extent  and  too  unrideable  in  character  to  give  the  Field  a  chance  to  follow 
hounds  and  it  is  only  for  this  reason  that  the  members  of  the  Hunt  are  in- 
clined to  follow  the  drag  at  all.  Blank  days  are  almost  unknown,  and  "the 
glorious  uncertainty  of  fox-hunting "  with  the  Smithtown  men  is  only  whether 
the  fox  will  take  to  the  open  or  cling  to  the  large,  strong  coverts. 

Most  of  the  Field  ride  clean-bred  or  at  least  seven-eighths-bred  horses, 
but  the  Master  writes  us  that  any  fairly  well-bred  one  which  can  jump  is 
really  perfectly  suited  to  the  country. 


169 


The  Suffolk  Hounds 


DISTINCTIVE  COLLAR - - Mauve 

EVENING  DRESS Scarlet  coat,  mauve  collar  and  facings 

MASTER - Richard  Newton,  Jr.,  Esq. 

SECRETARY - -  H.  P.  Robbins,  Esq.,  "Asher  House" 

Southampton,  L.  I.,  N.  Y. 

HUNTSMAN F.  Haile 

1st,  Daniel  Gladvtin 


WHIPPERS-IN -- .--  >  ^   ,  ^ 

2nd,  George  Moore 

HOUNDS - 1  2  couples,  English 

KENNELS  AND  POST-OFFICE Southampton,  L.  I.,  N.  Y. 

DAYS  OF  MEETING Wednesday  and  Saturday 

LENGTH  OF  SEASON j  September    1st   to  January    1st.     Bye- 

(  days  in  winter  when  weather  permits 


NO  portion  of  Long  Island  is  better  fitted  by  nature  for  cross- 
country riding  than  Suffolk  County.  Acres  on  acres  of  good, 
sound  turf  with  very  little  cover  and  practically  no  swamps  make 
the  gallopmg  all  that  could  be  desired,  and  to  these  natural  advantages  the 
farmers  have  added  the  cleanest  of  timber  fences,  big  and  stiff,  but  so  well 
placed  that  any  good  hunter  can  negotiate  them. 

We  have  already  said,  in  the  chapter  on  the  Essex  Hounds,  that  Mr. 
Pfizer  had  been  in  the  habit  at  one  time  of  bringing  his  pack  down  to 
Southampton  for  a  part  of  the  season,  and  when  the  time  came,  as  it  did  in 
1 906,  that  he  did  not  return,  many  of  the  summer  colony  who  had  estates 
in  Southampton,  Water-Mill,  Bridgehampton,  Amagansett  and  Easthampton 
found  that  they  had  become  so  much  wedded  to  the  sport  that  they  could 
not  dispense  with  it.  Accordingly,  on  October  1  5th  of  that  year,  Messrs. 
Charles  Coster,  H.  P.  Robbins,  W.  Scott  Cameron  and  Richard  Newton, 
Jr.,  representing  the  keenest  of  the  hunting  element,  met  at  Southampton  and 
formed  the  Suffolk  Hunt. 

170 


KICHARD  NEWTON,  JR.,   ESQ.,   M.F.H. 


THE    SUFFOLK 

During  the  time  that  Mr.  Pfizer  had  hunted  the  country,  Mr.  Newton 
had  often  acted  as  Field  Master  and  it  was  he  who  was  elected  M.  F.  H. 
of  the  new  organization.  Then  came  the  question  of  hounds;  and  Mr. 
Charles  Coster  very  kindly  bought  twelve  couples  of  the  bitch  pack  which 
were  at  that  time  offered  for  sale  by  the  Orange  County  Hunt  and  lent  them 
to  the  country  to  be  hunted  as  a  subscription  pack.  With  these  as  a  nu- 
cleus, the  pack  is  steadily  growing.  In  1 908  they  showed  a  pack  of  five 
couples  at  the  annual  Westminster  Kennel  Club  Show,  Madison  Square 
Garden,  New  York,  and  while  they  did  not  compare  favorably  wath  the 
crack  packs  which  competed  there,  it  certainly  showed  the  right  kind  of  spirit, 
and  the  Master  deserves  great  praise  for  making  a  beginning. 

A  better  riding  country  it  would  be  hard  to  find;  the  big  upstanding 
post-and-rail  fences  meet  one  every  few  hundred  yards,  hounds  run  fast  over 
the  flat  grass  country  and  it  requires  a  bold,  big  jumping,  clean-bred  horse  to 
live  with  the  Suffolk. 

The  fixtures  are  all  within  easy  hacking  distance  of  the  many  small  towns 
in  the  country,  although  it  is  mainly  from  the  localities  before  mentioned  that 
the  supporters  of  the  Hunt  come;  in  fact  the  country  proper  includes  all 
these  townships  and  is  in  charge  of  a  committee  of  members,  who  take  great 
pains  to  treat  the  property-owners  with  the  utmost  consideration.  In  con- 
sequence, all  are  in  quiet  sympathy  with  the  sport,  as  they  know  that  all 
damage  bills  are  promptly  paid  and  that  the  Hunt  values  the  privileges  ac- 
corded to  it  by  their  permission  to  nde  over  the  land. 

Each  year  there  is  a  great  Hunt  supper,  at  which  the  farmers  are  the 
guests  of  the  Club,  whose  members  vie  with  each  other  in  making  them  feel 
at  home. 

During  the  last  two  years  a  steeplechase  meeting  has  been  inaugurated 
and  the  three-quarter-mile  track  which  has  been  laid  out  at  Southampton  is 
supplemented  by  two  steeplechase  courses;  one  of  them  with  regulation 
fences  and  the  other  over  a  natural  country.  This  meeting  is  the  scene  each 
fall  of  a  very  pleasant  little  gathering  of  Long  Island  sportsmen,  and  to  the 
credit  of  Suffolk  County  horses,  be  it  said  that  it  takes  a  nag  of  more  than 
first-rate  quality  to  "  show  them  the  way." 

171 


The  Tomahawk  Hunt 


DISTINCTIVE  COLLAR — - - Bronze  green 

MASTER - — - WaUace  W.  Sanford.  Esq. 

SECRETARY - -- - V.  R.  Shackelford,  Esq.,  Orange,  Va. 

HUNTSMAN ~ - - - - - - The  Master 

HOUNDS - - 1 0  couples.  American 

KENNELS - - - — — —  "  Kenmore  ",  Orange,  Va. 

POST-OFFICE - - - - - Orange,  Va. 

DAYS  OF  MEETING - Thursday,  with  an  occasional  bye 

LENGTH  OF  SEASON - -.- - - October  1st  to  May  1st 

THE  autumn  of  1902  saw  the  founding  cf  a  small  Hunt  by 
Messrs.  L.  S.  Ricketts,  J.  B.  McComb,  John  W.  McComb,  H. 
S.  Holladay,  Jr..  E.  B.  Sidnor.  W.  W.  Osborne  and  L.  L. 
Shannon,  all  residents  of  Orange  County,  Virginia.  The  organization,  which 
was  first  called  the  Orange  County  Hunt,  was  the  outcome  of  the  mterest 
and  enthusiasm  of  its  founders  in  fox-hunting  and  of  the  breeding  of  the  type 
of  horse  used  for  that  purpose. 

The  first  Master  was  Mr.  J.  B.  McComb,  and  for  the  first  two  seasons  he 
worked  hard  to  get  the  little  Hunt  on  its  feet.  In  1 904,  Mr.  McComb  was 
succeeded  by  Mr.  Jaffrey  Woodriff,  who  also  remained  in  office  for  two 
seasons,  when  the  present  Master,  Mr.  Wallace  Sanford,  was  elected.  In 
1 906,  the  Hunt  changed  to  its  present  name  m  order  not  to  conflict  with  the 
Orange  Count}'  Hunt  of  New  York  and  the  Plains,  Virginia,  and  made  ap- 
plication for  recognition  by  the  National  Steeplechase  and  Hunt  Association, 
which  was  promptly  granted.  Since  Mr.  Sanford's  election,  the  Hunt  has 
gone  forward  steadily  and  now  has  taken  its  place  as  one  of  the  well-known 
organizations  of  Virginia. 

The  territory  hunted  over  comprises  the  northwestern  half  of  Orange 

172 


WALLAfK  W.    SANKOKU,    ESy.,    M.F.H. 


THE    TOMAHAWK 

County,  which  includes  the  townships  of  Rapidan,  Orange,  Madison  Run 
and  Somerset. 

The  fences  are  for  the  most  part  typical  of  that  section  of  Virginia,  of  the 
"worm"  variety,  with  an  occasional  plank  fence  and  sometimes  a  "staked 
rail. "  Hitherto,  wire  has  interfered  very  little  with  the  hunting,  but  of  late 
it  is  beginning  to  creep  in,  and  already  arrangements  are  being  made  to  panel 
the  country.  The  surface  of  the  territory  hunted  is  rather  more  hilly  than 
one  would  wish  to  see,  and  the  jumping  is  at  times  rather  trappy,  so  that  a 
very  temperate  three-quarter-bred  horse,  who  can  "pop"  cleverly  is  the  one 
best  suited  to  it.  The  members  of  the  Tomahawk  Hunt  find  that  for  their 
use  the  American  foxhound  is  preferable,  but  the  pack  is  still  in  its  infancy, 
only  ten  couples  being  kept  at  present,  and  it  is  possible  that  time  and  ex- 
perience will  lead  them  to  change  their  opinion.  At  present,  the  hounds  are 
used  for  both  fox  and  drag. 

The  landowners  take  a  great  interest  in  the  sport  and  evince  perfect  wil- 
lingness to  allow  hunting  over  any  of  their  property;  provided  always,  of 
course,  that  any  damage  done  to  crops  or  fences  is  promptly  made  good. 


173 


The  Toronto  Hunt 

DISTINCTIVE  COLLAR Dark  blue 

EVENING  DRESS Scarlet  coat,  scarlet  facings,  dark  blue  collar 

MASTER George  W.  Beardmore,  Esq. 

SECRETARY E.  B.  Johnson,  Esq.,  Scarboro,  Ontario,  Canada 

HUNTSMAN - Frank  Haynes 

WHIPPER-IN John  Potter 

HOUNDS -- - 20  couples,  English 

KENNELS Scarboro,  Ontario 

POST-OFFICE - - - Toronto,  Ontario 

DAYS  OF  MEETING Tuesday  and  Saturday 

LENGTH  OF  SEASON \  ^°"  '"°"''''   ""  ^"'"™'  ^""^ 

winter.     Six  weeks    in    spring 


CANADA,  to  which  a  great  English  writer  recently  referred  as 
"the  future  playground  of  Europe,"  has  always  furnished  an 
abundance  of  sport  of  the  rougher  sort.  Owing  to  the  rigor  of 
its  winter  climate,  however,  fox-hunting  has  obtained  a  foothold  only  in  the 
few  favored  localities  where  the  inborn  love  of  the  chase  to  be  found  in  all 
Englishmen  has  been  able  to  overcome  the  obstacles  presented  by  nature 
and  the  attitude  of  the  French  population,  which  constitutes  a  strong  propor- 
tion of  the  landowners. 

The  average  "habitant"  does  not  as  a  rule  actively  oppose  the  sport  as 
practised  by  his  Anglo-Saxon  neighbor,  but  maintains  a  stolid  indifference 
to  it,  and  it  often  requires  much  tact  on  the  part  of  the  M.  F.  H.  to  success- 
fully handle  questions  of  damages  and  to  retain  the  good  will  of  the  small 
farmers. 

Frenchmen,  however,  are  really  good  sportsmen  at  heart;  one  has  only 
to  consider  the  number  of  packs  kept  up  in  France  at  the  present  day  to 

174 


THE    TORONTO 

be  convinced  of  this  fact.  True  it  is  that  these  packs  are  maintained  chiefly 
for  stag-  and  boar-hunting,  rather  than  exclusively  for  the  pursuit  of  the  fox, 
but  the  French  residents  in  that  portion  of  the  Province  of  Quebec  which 
has  been  hunted  by  the  Montreal  Hunt  for  over  eighty  years  have  learned 
to  love  the  sport  of  fox-hunting,  and  not  only  has  all  opposition  long  since 
ceased,  but  there  has  sprung  up  near  Montreal,  of  late,  an  organization  whose 
officers  and  members  are  predominantly  of  French  descent. 

The  Toronto  Hunt  owes  its  origin  to  a  small  group  of  Englishmen  who 
formed  a  Hunt  Association  at  Toronto  about  the  middle  of  the  last  century. 

The  newly  formed  organization  elected  to  the  office  of  M.  F.  H.  John 
Hendrie,  Esq.,  and  backed  him  with  a  liberal  subscription  for  the  purpose 
of  procuring  a  pack  of  hounds  and  putting  the  Hunt  on  its  feet.  Mr.  Hen- 
drie was  a  keen  hunting  man,  a  great  lover  of  horses  and  perhaps  the  most 
noted  Canadian  sportsman  of  his  day.  He  always  maintained  a  large  stud 
for  the  breeding  of  racehorses  and  hunters,  and  no  name  is  better  known 
today  in  the  racing  world  of  America.  A  number  of  drafts  were  obtained 
from  England,  and  the  Master,  wdth  J.  Halligan  as  huntsman,  began  regular 
hunting.  After  a  very  successful  Mastership,  Mr.  Hendrie  gave  up  the 
hounds  and  Mr.  J.  Copeland  was  elected  in  his  stead. 

The  records  of  this  period  are  obscure,  but  it  was  during  Mr.  Copeland's 
years  in  office  that  the  Hunt  received  a  great  impetus  by  the  stationing  in 
Toronto  of  English  regiments,  both  cavalry  and  infantry,  some  ten  years 
after  the  founding  of  the  organization.  Wherever  British  officers  are  sta- 
tioned, the  world  over,  there  British  national  sport  in  some  form  or  other  is 
sure  to  flourish,  and  these  may  be  called  the  golden  years  of  the  Toronto 
Hunt.  Mr.  Copeland  resigning  about  this  time.  Colonel  Jennings  took  com- 
mand of  the  pack  and  country,  and,  procuring  additions  to  the  kennels  from 
England,  gave  his  Field  sport  of  the  very  highest  order  until  compelled  to 
resign  his  office  on  account  of  his  regiment  being  ordered  away.  Mr.  George 
Gooderham  succeeded  Col.  Jennings,  but  the  loss  of  the  support  of  the  mili- 
tary element  was  a  severe  one  and  the  Hunt  languished  for  several  years 
during  his  Mastership  and  that  of  his  successor,  Mr.  Andrew  Smith. 

During  the  early  nineties,  however,  the  Hunt  was  re-organized,  new  ken- 

175 


THE    TORONTO 

nels  built,  more  property  acquired  and  its  popularity  has  continued  to  in- 
crease from  that  day  to  this,  especially  since  the  entering  into  office  of  the 
present  Master,  Mr.  George  W.  Beardmore. 

At  the  outset,  before  the  unlucky  introduction  of  barbed  wire,  the  fox 
alone  was  hunted,  but  of  late  years,  this  great  obstacle  to  sport  has  increased 
so  rapidly  that  the  drag  has  been  substituted,  although  there  are  strong 
hopes  of  dealing  with  the  wire  evil  by  systematic  panelling  methods  and 
thus  enabling  a  return  to  the  better  sport  of  fox-hunting. 

The  country  is  a  first  rate  galloping  one,  the  fields  in  the  eastern  portion 
of  it  being  very  large,  comprising  grass  land  and  pasture  wath  clean  fencing 
and,  as  yet,  not  much  v^are.  When  hounds  meet  in  this  section,  the  mem- 
bers of  the  Field  are  apt  to  be  mounted  on  horses  which  are  clean-bred  or 
have  only  a  very  small  infusion  of  cold  blood,  as  hounds  run  very  hard  on 
the  grass,  and  two  and  sometimes  three  lines  of  four  to  six  miles  each  are 
usually  laid.  In  the  north  and  west  countries,  the  going  is  quite  trappy 
and  the  fields  cramped,  and  as  there  is  a  good  deal  of  wire  to  be  met  with, 
a  more  temperate  mount  is  required;  most  of  the  Field  riding  three-quarter- 
bred  horses.  As  the  fencing  here  is  plentiful  and  much  diversified,  a  clever 
jumper  is  a  sine  qua  non  if  one  wishes  to  be  carried  with  comfort  and 
safety. 

At  present  the  landowners  are  very  friendly,  as  a  general  thing,  and 
the  efforts  of  the  Hunt  authorities  to  interest  them  by  means  of  horse 
shows  and  race  meetings  have  met  with  considerable  success. 

In  1 908,  Mr.  Beardmore,  feeling  that  new  blood  was  needed  in  the  ken- 
nels, went  to  Ireland  and  personally  secured  a  number  of  hounds,  includ- 
ing several  stallion  hounds  from  the  Tipperary  with  which  he  hopes  to 
greatly  improve  his  pack. 


176 


The  Upland  Hunt 


MASTER - - Edward  Crozer,  Esq. 

SECRETARY Robert  H.Page,  Esq.,  Upland.  Pa. 

HUNTSMAN -.- ^ - - Abner  Garrett 

HOUNDS - - - - - - 20  couples,  American 

KENNELS - - - - Upland,  Pa. 

POST-OFFICE - - aesler.  Pa. 

DAYS  OF  MEETING - - Every  hunting  day 

LENGTH  OF  SEASON — - - August  1st  to  April  1st 

PROBABLY  more  Hunts  flourish  around  Philadelphia  to-day  than  in 
any  other  portion  of  the  country,  and  the  Upland  Hunt,  now  Mr. 
Crozer's  private  pack,  is  one  of  the  most  recent  of  these. 

In  1900,  Mr.  Crozer  and  Mr.  J.  Howard  Lewis,  Jr.,  whose  father  was 
one  of  the  founders  of  the  Rose  Tree  Fox  Hunting  Club,  supplied  a  long- 
felt  want  by  starting  the  Upland  Flunt  in  a  section  of  the  country  which, 
up  to  that  time,  had  not  been  hunted  by  an  organized  pack  of  hounds. 
Messrs.  Crozer  and  Lewis,  as  well  as  a  number  of  other  residents,  had  been 
hunting  the  country  in  an  irregular  manner  for  several  years,  and  when  the 
organization  was  started  it  was  joined  by  pretty  much  everybody  around  the 
country.  Mr.  Crozer,  who  was  elected  M.  F.  H.,  owned  most  of  the 
hounds,  many  of  them  bemg  part  of  a  pack  owned  and  maintained  by  one 
branch  of  his  family  in  Delaware  County,  Maryland,  for  the  last  seventy- 
five  years. 

The  Upland  hounds  are  hunted  by  Abner  Garrett,  a  typical  American 
huntsman,  who  handles  them  in  the  good  old-fashioned  method  which  has 
been  in  force  in  America  since  time  immemonal  and  has  not  yet  been  dis- 
carded by  American  huntsmen  as  it  has  by  Englishmen.  The  Master  is  a 
keen  hound-man,  taking  as  much  interest  in  the  work  of  his  hounds  as  he 
\  177 


THE    UPLAND 

does  in  riding  over  the  big,  stiff  fences  of  Delaware  County.  He  contends, 
to  use  his  own  words,  that  "any  cur  can  run  a  breast-high  scent"  and 
likes  nothing  better  than  to  hear  his  tender-nosed  hounds  throw  their  deep 
voices  on  the  line  of  a  fox,  perhaps  six  or  eight  hours  old,  which  "  makes 
the  shivers  run  up  and  down  your  back."  Hounds  go  out  early  in  the 
morning,  work  about  the  open  country  and  woodlands  till  they  hit  an  over- 
night drag,  go  on  with  it  at  a  varying  pace,  and,  —  to  give  the  devil  his  due, 
—  usually  run  their  quarry  in  at  the  end  of  a  long  day's  hunting.  That  this 
is  very  pretty  work,  no  one  who  has  seen  it  will  question,  and  many  are 
inclined  to  agree  that,  if  this  method  is  employed,  Mr.  Crozer  is  right  in  con- 
tending that  "  an  American  hound  with  a  heavy  tongue  will  settle  down 
and  hunt  an  overnight  drag  better  than  the  English  or  half-bred  English  type. 
The  slow  work  of  a  good  hound  (American)  I  find  very  attractive." 

This  may  be  so,  but  Mr.  Crozer  is  the  first  American  hound-man  whom 
we  have  heard  admit  that  the  work  of  fiis  hounds  is  slow.  He  says  that 
"  any  cur  can  run  a  breast-high  scent."  If  by  that,  Mr.  Crozer  means  that 
the  American  hound  is  the  only  hound  that  can  hunt  a  cold  line  in  the 
manner  admired  by  him,  it  might  be  suggested  that  many  an  English  hound 
is  drafted  for  just  this  slow,  line-hunting,  dwelling  method  of  procedure. 
As  has  been  said  in  the  introductory  chapter,  "What  is  the  use?" 

Crosses  with  English  hounds  have  been  tried,  but  have  been  found  un- 
satisfactory, and  at  present  Mr.  Crozer  has  in  his  kennels  twenty  couples  of 
typical  American  hounds,  most  of  them  descended  from  family  hounds,  though 
some  few  have  been  obtained  from  Delaware  and  Maryland.  Mr.  Crozer 
has  had  good  luck  with  his  puppies,  and  most  of  the  pack  are  home-bred. 

Foxes  are  on  the  increase  in  the  country  and  the  hunting  during  the  recent 
seasons  has  been  exceptionally  good ;  only  two  blank  days  having  occurred 
during  the  winter  of  1 907.  One  of  the  most  brilliant  runs  in  the  history  of 
the  Hunt  occurred  during  this  season  (1907)  when  hounds  found  a  cold 
line  on  the  Master's  own  estate,  worked  it  up,  found  their  fox,  and  drove 
him  in  a  fifty-mile  circle,  putting  him  to  ground  within  a  quarter  of  a  mile  of 
the  kennels.  The  M.  F.  H.  himself  vouches  for  the  authenticity  of  this  run ; 
certainly  an  excellent  day's  work,  but  it  tends  to  prove,  it  would  seem,  that  the 

178 


:2?J 


S 


THE    UPLAND 

speed  of  American  hounds  has  been  greatly  exaggerated  by  some  of  their  ad- 
mirers, or  else  that  "Mister  Charley"  was  a  very,  very  long  way  ahead 
throughout  the  run.  Given  a  fair  start,  the  fox  is  not  whelped  that  can  live  in 
front  of  English  hounds  for  fifty  miles.  He  would  either  go  to  ground,  or 
they  would  kill  him,  or  scent  would  fail  and  they  would  lose  his  line.  Such 
a  run  as  Mr.  Crozer  describes  is  certainly,  however,  a  great  tribute  to  the 
nose  of  the  American  foxhound. 

As  to  the  type  of  horse  best  suited  to  the  country,  which  is  just  rolling 
enough  to  make  it  interesting  and  good  for  horses,  with  big,  stiff  post-and- 
rails  and  practically  no  wire,  Mr.  Crozer  has  the  following  to  say :  —  "1  am 
in  favor  of  a  well-mannered  thoroughbred.  We  have  long  days  and  cover 
a  lot  of  country,  and  I  have  found,  personally,  that  thoroughbreds  can  pack 
my  weight  and  go  the  long  distances,  at  a  fair  speed,  easier  than  half-breds, 
and  when  they  get  going  mile  after  mile,  at  a  good  clip,  I  know  that  they  can. 
Most  of  the  men,  however,  hunt  half-breds,  or  worse,  and  stay  pretty  well 
up. 

The  landowners  for  miles  around  are  good,  old-fashioned  farmers,  "an 
exceedingly  pleasant  set  of  men,  all  of  whom  love  to  see  a  good  hunt,  and 
many  of  whom  join  in  with  us.  We  are  welcome  on  their  land  summer 
and  wrinter." 

Mr.  Crozer,  who  is  a  great  lover  of  sport  with  gun  and  bird-dog,  as  well 
as  with  horse  and  hound,  spends  much  of  his  time  in  wdnter  at  Thomasville, 
Georgia,  and  sometimes  takes  the  Upland  pack, — which  is  now  his  private 
property, — down  there  for  some  fox-hunting.  As  a  rule,  however,  the  club- 
house at  Upland  is  kept  opened  and  hounds  hunt  regularly  throughout  the 
season. 


179 


The  Warrenton  Hunt 

DISTINCTIVE  COLLAR - -.- White 

MASTER  T.  Lee  Evans,  Esq. 

SECRETARY — F.  R.  Satterlee,  Esq.,  Warrenton,  Va. 

HON.  HUNTSMAN Fleet  GaUoway.  Esq. 

HOUNDS - 1 0  couples,  American 

KENNELS  AND  POST-OFFICE Warrenton,  Va. 

DAYS  OF  MEETING Tuesday,  Thursday  and  Saturday 

LENGTH  OF  SEASON - - October  1st  to  April  1st 

WARRENTON,  Virginia.  The  two  words  are  almost  synony- 
mous with  horse  and  hound  to  the  ears  of  any  hunting  man 
in  America;  and  to  many  they  recall  good  days  of  sport  in 
the  saddle  —  either  following  the  Warrenton  drag,  or  hunting  foxes  with  the 
private  pack  of  Mr.  James  K.  Maddux,  which  has  already  been  spoken  of 
in  another  chapter. 

The  Warrenton  Hunt,  proper,  was  first  incorporated  in  1 889,  about  the 
time  that  Mr.  Maddux  began  to  keep  a  pack  of  his  own,  and  although 
the  private  pack  of  Austen  Blackwell,  Esq.,  was  used  for  the  drag,  Mr. 
Maddux  was  honored  by  being  elected  to  the  Mastership  of  the  new  Hunt. 
Mr.  Blackwell's  hounds  had  come  down  in  his  family  from  generation  to  gen- 
eration for  a  number  of  years  and  were  quite  a  noted  strain,  having  hunted 
foxes  in  the  vicinity  of  Warrenton  for  a  great  many  years,  and  it  seemed  in 
many  ways  rather  a  pity  to  degrade  them  to  the  drag,  this  being  the  man- 
ner in  which  cross-country  sport  was  followed  by  the  new  club.  However, 
that  was  the  vote  of  the  majority,  and  it  was  followed.  At  first  the  Fields 
were  small  and  the  sport  was  carried  on  in  rather  a  haphazard  sort  of  man- 
ner, but  as  time  went  on  and  new  people  settled  about  Warrenton,  interest 
grew,  and  today  the  Warrenton  "  drag "  is  as  well  known  as  any  in  the 
country. 

180 


i    ^ 


'/ 


t 


c- 


'aaaoa>"ywrasEy*"r 


F.   A.    B.    PORIMAN,    KSQ.,   LATE  M.F.H. 


THE    WARRENTON 

There  is  rarely  a  meet  now-a-days  that  does  not  see  at  least  one  visitor 
from  some  other  Hunt  out;  and  a  goodly  number  of  northern  hunting 
men  and  women  go  there  with  their  horses  for  some  of  the  winter  months, 
maicing  Warrenton  one  of  the  hunting  centres  of  the  south.  One  can  hunt 
foxes  with  Mr.  Maddux's  pack,  or  the  drag  with  the  Warrenton,  while  the 
Orange  County,  the  Middlesex,  the  Piedmont,  and  Mr.  Okie's,  all  of  them 
foxhound  packs,  are  within  thirty  miles,  so  that  by  driving  or  hacking  a  bit, 
the  best  packs  of  Virginia, — or  one  might  almost  say  of  the  United  States, 
—  are  available. 

The  country  is  peculiarly  adapted  to  the  sport,  being  of  a  rolling  nature 
v^ath  large  enclosures,  little  plough,  and  firm  blue-grass  sod,  while  the  fences 
probably  embrace  a  wider  variety  than  in  any  other  Hunt,  being  post-and- 
rail,  snake  fences,  stone  walls,  plank  or  slat  fences,  a  few  hedges,  stake-and- 
bound  rails,  with  often  a  gate  or  bars  in  a  line  of  wire.  It  requires  a  clever 
and  well  schooled  hunter  to  follow  in  the  first  flight  over  some  of  the  biggest 
lines,  for  many  of  the  fences  are  in  the  neighborhood  of  five  feet,  often  over, 
and  practically  unbreakable.  The  streams  and  ditches  are  seldom  nego- 
tiated, as  the  banks  are  treacherous  as  a  rule  and  very  dangerous. 

The  Club  has  not  a  large  membership  and  the  resources  are  small  com- 
pared with  other  Hunts,  so  that  the  office  of  Master  is  an  arduous  one.  Of 
the  many  good  sportsmen  who  have  hunted  the  hounds,  Mr.  F.  A.  B. 
Portman  was  undoubtedly  the  most  popular  Master,  being  a  man  of  gentle  dis- 
position, of  iron  nerve,  and  a  sportsman  to  the  core.  His  death  in  1 907,  at  the 
age  of  forty,  was  deeply  felt  by  all  hunting  men  of  this  section  and  many  who 
had  ridden  behind  him  in  the  field  from  nearly  every  Hunt  in  the  country. 

Other  gentlemen  who  have  carried  the  hom  for  the  Warrenton  Hunt 
and  their  terms  in  office  are  Mr.  James  K.  Maddux,  1889  to  1894;  Mr. 
N.  B.  Bevan,  1895  and  '96;  Mr.  J.  D.  Hooe  and  Mr.  Bevan  again,  1896 
and  '97;  Mr.  A.  B.  Dundas,  1897  and  '98;  Mr.  F.  L.  W.  Barker.  1898 
and  '99;  Mr.  F.  A.  B.  Portman,  1899  to  1903;  Mr.  U.  D.  Benner,  1903 
to  1905;  Mr.  Maddux  again  in  1905  and  '06;  Mr.  Portman  again  until 
his  death,  in  1907,  and  the  present  Master,  Mr.  T.  Lee  Evans,  —  a  hard- 
riding  sportsman,  who  believes  in  stiff  timber;  the  higher  the  better. 

18] 


THE    WARRENTON 

The  number  of  couples  of  hounds  kept  varies,  and  both  English  and 
American  have  been  tried,  the  latter  with  more  success,  though  in  the 
opinion  of  some  of  the  members  the  best  pack  the  club  owned  was  one 
descended  from  English  hounds  crossed  on  the  American  breed.  Many 
of  the  most  noted  hunters  in  the  country  have  received  their  education  with 
these  hounds.  There  is  probably  not  a  hunt  in  the  east  in  which  Warrenton 
is  not  represented  by  one  or  more  good  horses  and  many  have  been  taken 
to  England;  prominent  among  these  being  "  Becky  Sharp,"  who  carried  Mr. 
Foxhall  Keene  so  well  over  the  Leicestershire  countries ;  "  Guidon,"  who 
was  owned  by  Mr.  F.  Ambrose  Clark,  and  "  Dolphin,"  who  belonged  to 
Mr.  Mitchell  Harrison. 

Hunting  in  Warrenton  is  a  social  feature,  the  runs  being  largely  attended 
by  interested  onlookers,  there  being  often  from  twenty  to  fifty  carriages 
following  on  the  roads,  while  the  Fields  vary  from  twelve  to  thirty-five.  A 
number  of  ladies  hunt  regularly  and  the  whole  Field  turns  out  well,  the 
mounts  being  of  the  best. 

The  Club  races  each  year  are  one  of  the  events  of  the  season  and  are 
attended  by  a  local  crowd  of  several  thousand,  with  a  large  sprinkling  of 
visitors  from  other  sections,  and  a  horse  that  carries  off  the  cup  in  any  of 
the  races  has  proved  himself  able  to  cross  most  countries  with  credit. 


182 


r 


k'i  i 


# 


The  Watchung  Hunt 

DISTINCTIVE  COLLAR Green 

EVENING  DRESS ~ - - — -  Scariet  coat,  green  collar  and  facings 

MASTEK — Lewis  E.  Waring,  Esq. 

SECRETARY Harvey  Fisk,  Esq.,  New  York,  N.  Y. 

HUNTSMAN - Chris.  Comins 

HOUNDS - - 18  1-2  couples,  English 

KENNELS  AND  POST-OFFICE Plainfield,  N.  J. 

DAYS  OF  MEETING Wednesday  and  Saturday,  and  all  holidays 

LENGTH  OF  SEASON-- - October  ist  to  April  15th 

IT  has  been  said  that  the  northern  part  of   Middlesex  County,  New 
Jersey,  is  an  undiscovered  country ;  but  this  will  hold  true  very  little 
longer,  as  now  that  the  Watchung  Hunt  has  located  its  headquarters 
there,  the  country  is  bound  to  settle  up  rapidly. 

In  some  respects  the  country  reminds  one  of  the  Midlands  of  England ; 
and  Progress  in  its  onward  march  has  not  yet  laid  its  ruthless  hand  on  the 
wild,  beautiful  and  picturesque  landscape.  There  are  many  good  open 
fields,  enclosed  by  stiff  post-and-rail  fences;  but, — alas,  for  those  who 
would  like  to  see  more  real  fox-hunting,  —  there  are  also  acres  of  wild,  im- 
penetrable thickets,  which,  while  they  provide  natural  cover  for  the  foxes, 
are  not  conducive  to  the  best  results  for  the  fox-hunter.  At  any  rate,  it  has 
been  found  very  difficult  to  get  much  sport  in  that  way,  and  although  the 
members  of  the  Hunt  are  all  very  keen  for  this  branch  of  the  sport,  the 
prospects  for  the  future  are  poor. 

The  Watchung  Hunt  was  started  in  1 902,  by  Dr.  Middleton  O'Malley 
Knott,  of  Plainfield,  New  Jersey,  who  first  conceived  the  idea  of  establishing 
a  pack  of  draghounds.  Dunng  the  first  season,  he  had  but  few  supporters, 
but  in  1 903  interest  became  more  general,  and  the  result  was  the  holding 

183 


THE    WATCHUNG 

of  the  first  horse  show  in  Plainfield,  by  the  Riding  and  Driving  Club,  which 
was  an  unqualified  success.  Hunters  and  other  high-class  horses  came  into 
immediate  favor,  and  many  people  were  brought  together  who,  before  that 
time,  had  hardly  realized  that  they  were  horse-lovers. 

Two  years  later,  the  Hunt  was  incorporated,  and  has  steadily  grown, 
until  now  it  is  a  flourishing  organization  of  over  one  hundred  members,  and 
has  leased  a  property  just  outside  the  city  limits,  where  the  Club  has  forty 
acres  of  ground,  a  large,  comfortable  house,  ample  stabling  for  thirty  horses, 
and  a  good  half-mile  track.  It  is  also  their  intention  to  lay  out,  in  the  future, 
a  steeplechase  course  on  the  property,  which  will  be  a  natural  one,  all  the 
obstacles  being  post-and-rail  fences,  ditches,  and  stone  walls;  and  it  is  pro- 
posed to  hold  hereafter  their  annual  spring  and  fall  race  meetings  over  this 
course.     A  schooling-ground  for  green  hunters  v\all  also  be  laid  out. 

To  return  to  the  history  of  the  Hunt ;  the  Master  writes  as  follows : 

"  When  the  Club  was  first  started,  we  had  only  a  few  couples  of  small 
American  hounds.  Later,  a  draft  of  English  hounds  was  bought,  but  they 
proved  a  disappointment,  as  they  did  not  seem  to  hunt  with  keenness  and 
snap,  and  gave  very  httle  music.  These  hounds  were  of  an  infenor  quality, 
which  undoubtedly  accounts  for  their  being  so  unsatisfactory."  In  the  spring 
of  1 906  the  Watchung  imported  from  the  pack  of  Aubrey  Wallace,  Esq., 
of  Brisbane  Castle,  Millstreet,  County  Cork,  Ire.,  a  draft  of  black  and  tan 
Kerry  Beagles,  averaging  about  twenty-three  inches  in  height.  These  hounds, 
known  in  Ireland  as  the  "  Millstreet "  pack,  are  maintained  and  owned  en- 
tirely by  the  Master,  Mr.  Wallace,  who  hunts  both  hares  and  foxes  over  a 
great  part  of  the  Duhallow  country,  having  secured  permission  from  its  M. 
F.  H.  for  that  purpose.  These  Kerry  Beagles  have  been  maintained  by 
Mr.  Wallace's  family  since  early  in  the  seventeenth  century. 

This  draft  gave  general  satisfaction  to  the  Watchung  members,  being  ex- 
tremely keen  and  showing  the  good  manners  and  discipline  of  the  English 
hound.  The  Club  had  these  hounds  until  the  summer  of  1907,  when  it 
was  decided,  for  the  best  interests  of  the  Hunt,  to  remove  the  Club  and 
kennels  from  Colonia,  N.  J.,  to  Plainfield,  N.  J.  The  pack  remained  in 
Colonia  with  Mr.  Charles  D.  Freeman  (who  was  Master  to  the  time  of  the 

184 


THE  WATCHUNG 

removal  to  Plainfield)  for  several  months,  vs^hen  they  were  sent  to  Millbrook, 
Dutchess  County,  N.  Y.,  where  they  are  now  being  hunted  by  Dr.  O'Malley 
Knott,  who  has  established  a  pack  in  that  part  of  the  country.  In  the  late 
summer  of  1 907,  there  was  purchased  a  draft  of  twelve  and  one  half  couples 
from  Lewas  G.  Young,  Esq.,  M.  F.  H.  of  the  Union  County  Draghounds, 
of  which  ten  couples  came  from  the  Montreal  and  were  brought  in  from 
Canada  in  the  previous  year  by  Mr.  Young.  These  hounds  are  good-look- 
ing and  have  excellent  bone  and  substance,  being  bred  from  the  best  blood 
obtainable  in  England.  They  were  hunted  during  the  fall  and  winter  of 
1 907  and  proved  most  satisfactory,  showing  the  keenness  and  drive  of  the 
American  hound,  with  the  excellent  manners  and  discipline  of  the  English. 
They  have  been  carefully  looked  after  smce  they  came  into  the  possession 
of  the  Hunt  by  Chris.  Comins,  the  huntsman,  who  deserves  great  credit  for 
their  physical  condition  and  manners. 

Early  in  1 908,  two  public-spirited  members,  Messrs.  E.  F.  Hooley  and 
Harvey  Fisk,  bought  a  small  draft  from  the  Middlesex  and  presented  them 
to  the  Hunt.  This  draft,  though  small,  was  very  high  in  quality,  containing 
among  others,  the  well  known  Champion  "  Vaulter "  and  several  very  good 
brood  bitches,  whose  blood  should  make  a  noticeable  improvement  in  the 
pack.  With  such  members  as  Messrs.  Hooley  and  Fisk,  who  seem  to 
take  a  strong  interest  in  the  welfare  of  the  pack,  and  a  young  and  enthusiastic 
Master,  the  Watchung  is  certainly  going  about  putting  its  pack  on  a  level 
with  the  best  in  the  country  and  getting  good  foxhound  blood  instead  of 
wasting  time  and  money  over  a  lot  of  nondescript  draghounds  and  taking  no 
pains  as  to  their  breeding  or  care. 

It  is  regrettable  that  there  are  some  Masters  in  America  who  think  that 
anything  is  good  enough  for  a  "dog"  and  that  so  long  as  six  or  eight  couples 
of  "  dogs  "  turn  up  at  a  meet  and  babble  on  a  drag  that  they  have  a  pack 
worthy  of  their  Hunt. 

For  the  past  three  years,  the  annual  race  meeting  has  been  held  on 
Decoration  Day  and  the  second  day  preceding  it,  and  there  have  been 
gathered  together  at  these  meetings  the  best  cross-country  horses  throughout 
New  Jersey  and  Long  Island.     These  annual  affairs  have  been  very  success- 

185 


THE    WATCHUNG 

ful  and  have  done  much  toward  retaining  the  good-will  of  the  farmers,  as 
several  races  for  them  are  held  and  on  the  holiday  they  are  the  guests 
of  the  Hunt  at  the  annual  dinner. 


186 


The  Westchester  County  Hunt 


DISTINCTIVE  UNIFORM - - Green  coat.  yeUow  coUar 

EVENING  DRESS Green  coat,  yellow  collar  and  facings 

MASTER - E.  S.  Reynal.  Esq. 

SECRETARY - Julian  Day.  Esq..  New  York.  N.  Y. 

HUNTSMAN - - - -The  Master 

KENNEL  HUNTSMAN - - J.  C.  Lidsler 

HON.  WHIPPER-IN - - - Fletcher  Harper.  Esq, 

HOUNDS - - - 1 5  couples,  English 

POST-OFFICE  AND  KENNELS - White  Plains,  N.  Y. 

DAYS  OF  MEETING Tuesday.  Thursday  and  Saturday 


LENGTH  OF  SEASON 


I  September  I  5  th  to  January  I  5  th, 
and  six  weeks  in  spring 


THE  Westchester  County  Hunt  was  founded  under  the  title  of  the 
"Country  Club  Harriers  "in  the  summer  of  1 886,  and  at  that  time 
Mr.  F.  O.  Beach  was  Master.  They  were  the  first  pack  to  be 
established  in  Westchester  County,  although  in  1 88 1  and  1 882  the  Queens 
County  Draghounds,  with  Mr.  F.  Gray  Griswold  as  Master,  tried  the  coun- 
try with  a  view  to  making  a  permanent  stay,  having  their  kennels  at  the 
"  Castle  "  in  New  Rochelie. 

As  we  have  seen  in  the  history  of  the  Meadow  Brook  Hunt,  Mr.  Gris- 
wold did  not  find  that  portion  of  the  Westchester  country  which  he  hunted 
to  his  liking,  but  the  seed  of  sport  which  he  had  sown  had  taken  root,  and 
eventually,  through  the  generosity  of  Mr  J.  M.  Waterbury,  President  of  the 
then  new  Country  Club,  a  pack  of  harriers  was  imported  from  England. 
Mr.  Beach  hunted  this  pack  for  one  year,  showing  good  sport,  and  turned 
them  over  to  Mr.  H.  N.  Potter  in  the  spring  of  1 887.  The  country  at  this 
time  was  limited  in  area,  the  kennels  being  at  the  wrong  end  of  the  county, 

187 


THE    WESTCHESTER 

and  after  a  Committee  and  Mr.  Pelham-Clinton  had  carried  the  harriers 
through  the  season  of  1 888,  hounds  and  horses  were  sold  and  raffled,  and 
the  Hunt  re-organized  as  the  Westchester  Hunt,  with  Mr.  T.  A.  Havemeyer 
as  Master  and  a  new  pack  with  kennels  at  White  Plains.  For  the  follow- 
ing ten  seasons,  the  hounds  continued  to  hunt  from  White  Plains  until  Mr. 
Havemeyer  resigned  in  1 895  and  Mr.  N.  C.  Reynal  was  elected  in  his  place. 

Mr.  R.  F.  Todd  and  Mr.  W.  E.  Iselin  followed  Mr.  Reynal,  each  of 
them  remaining  in  office  for  one  season  only,  when  Mr.  E.  S.  Reynal  was 
elected  and  served  until  1 90 1 .  The  younger  Mr.  Reynal  began  his  Mas- 
tership by  disposing  of  the  harriers  and  substituting  a  pack  of  English  fox- 
hounds, and  this  proving  on  the  whole  a  satisfactory  change,  the  Hunt  has 
continued  to  keep  the  same  type  of  hound  ever  since. 

Mr.  Reynal  resigned  in  1 90 1 ,  being  followed  by  Mr.  Howard  Willets, 
who  remained  in  office  one  season,  resigning  in  1 902  in  favour  of  Mr.  Louis 
Fitzgerald,  who  carried  the  horn  to  the  satisfaction  of  everyone  until  his 
tragic  death  in  1905,  when  Mr.  Reynal  was  again  persuaded  to  fill  the 
office  which  he  has  ever  since  retained.  Various  drafts  from  the  Pytchley, 
and  from  the  Middlesex,  have  recruited  the  Westchester  pack  from  time  to 
time,  and  the  quality  of  the  hounds  has  steadily  improved  during  the  second 
Mastership  of  Mr.  Reynal  until  at  present  there  are  about  fifteen  couples  of 
very  level,  good-looking  hounds  in  the  Westchester  kennels. 

In  1906,  Messrs.  Reynal  and  Potter  purchased  the  Clinchy  farm, 
about  three  miles  northeast  of  White  Plains,  and  fitted  up  the  farmhouse  for 
a  club.  On  June  1  st  of  that  year  the  Hunt  was  re-organized  under  the  new 
title  of  "  Westchester  County  Hunt,"  and  taking  a  ten-year  lease  with  pur- 
chase privileges,  moved  the  hounds  into  their  present  kennels. 

The  country  lies  north  of  a  line  drawn  from  Mamaroneck  to  White  Plains, 
with  the  Hariem  Division  of  the  New  York  Central  R.  R.  bounding  it  east 
and  west,  and  extending  north  into  Fairfield  County,  Connecticut.  Its  char- 
acter is  varied,  requiring  much  jumping,  as  the  enclosures  are  cramped,  with 
fences  not  always  as  small  as  one  might  wish.  There  are  few  rail  fences; 
perhaps  one  in  a  run,  stone  walls  being  the  rule,  and  as  there  is  breadth 
as  well  as  height  to  be  cleared,  a  bold,  fast  jumper  is  the  horse  needed. 

188 


EUGENE  S.   REYNAL,   ESQ.,  M.F.H.  SECOND  MASTERSHIP  1905- 


THE    WESTCHESTER 

Westchester  County  is  distinctly  a  grass  country,  and  except  for  dairy  pur- 
poses the  soil  is  not,  at  present  prices,  adaptable  for  farm  cultivation,  so  that 
hay  is  a  fairly  common  crop,  and  there  is  little  plough  to  disturb  the  gallop- 
ing. In  the  early  spring  the  going  is  heavy,  but  is  first-rate  in  April  —  as  a 
rule  better  than  in  October. 

Foxes  are  hunted  as  an  off-day  amusement,  the  country  to  the  north  be- 
ing full  of  them ;  but  they  are  wild  and  hard  to  kill.  The  drag,  usually 
laid  three  times  a  week  during  the  season,  is  rarely  less  than  seven  or  more 
than  twelve  miles  in  length. 

The  farmers  are,  on  the  whole,  favorable  to  hunting,  the  character  of  the 
fences  making  damages  small,  and  the  avoidance  of  newly  laid  down  fields 
being  the  principal  care  on  the  part  of  the  Master. 


189 


The  White  Marsh  Valley  Hunt 

DISTINCTIVE  UNIFORM - Green  coat,  scarlet  collar 

EVENING  DRESS - Scarlet  coat,  green  facings 

MASTER - Welsh  Strawbridge,  Esq. 

SECRETARY - - Thomas  Stokes,  Esq.,  Philadelphia,  Pa. 

HON.  HUNTSMAN - James  G.  Leiper.  Jr.,  Esq. 

HON.  WHIPPERSIN  ..- \  1^"^^''"  S'okes  ^^q. 

(  2nd,  Edward  N.  Benson,  Jr.,  Esq. 

HOUNDS - - 1 2  couples,  half-bred  English  auid  American 

KENNELS - "Erdenheim,"  While  Marsh  Valley  Township,  Pa. 

RAILWAY  STATION -Chestnut  Hill,  Philadelphia.  Pa. 

POST-OFFICE — Flourtown.   Pa. 

DAYS  OF  MEETING - Wednesday  and  Saturday,  and  all  holidays 

LENGTH  OF  SEASON October  1st  to  April  1st 

ALTHOUGH  the  White  Marsh  Valley  Hunt  was  not  founded 
until  1 903,  by  the  Messrs.  Edward  D.  Toland,  Thomas  Stokes, 
James  G.  Leiper,  Jr.,  R.  H.  Johnson,  Jr.,  and  Welsh  Strawbridge, 
the  fathers  of  several  of  these  gentlemen  had  run  paper-chases  in  that  part 
of  the  country  for  some  years,  and  the  interest  in  cross-country  riding,  having 
been  handed  down  to  the  present  generation,  had  never  entirely  died  out,  so 
that  as  these  gentlemen  grew  up  and  began  to  ride,  they  in  their  turn  kept 
up  the  paper-chases  in  a  desultory  sort  of  way.  The  runs  became  more 
frequent  and  their  devotees  increased ;  until  presently,  as  is  often  the  case, 
came  the  taste  for  hounds,  and  in  1 903  a  few  couples  were  bought.  The 
natural  advantages  of  the  country,  which  is  level  and  largely  used  for  graz- 
ing purposes,  were  all  favorable,  and  as  soon  as  the  residents  of  the  White 
Marsh  Valley  found  how  much  pleasure  could  be  derived  from  riding  to 
hounds,  they  all  joined  in  with  a  will  and  the  Club  was  soon  formed. 

190 


GOING  TO  CO\ER 


fl*^^.' 


CupyiiglileJ  by  J.  E.  Gn-ni.  Clusler.  Fa. 


WELL    OXER 


THE    WHITE    MARSH    VALLEY 

In  the  second  season,  Mr.  Welsh  Strawbridge,  who  had  been  elected 
Master  at  the  start,  bought  a  small  drah  of  English  hounds,  but  found  that 
these  ran  almost  mute  on  the  drag,  as  they  often  do.  Accordingly,  he  be- 
gan to  cross  them  with  the  native  hounds,  and  found  that  the  amimals  so 
produced  were,  on  the  whole,  more  satisfactorj'  for  the  purpose  for  which 
they  were  needed.  At  present,  Mr.  Strawbridge  has  twelve  couples  of 
hounds  in  his  kennels,  most  of  them  bred  along  the  lines  indicated  above, 
some  few  drafted  from  the  neighboring  Hunts  amd  a  few  from  Dr.  A.  C. 
Heffenger's  pack, — the  Portsmouth. 

The  White  Marsh  Valley  Hunt  developed  slowly,  in  this  manner,  up  to 
the  season  of  1 907  ;  when,  its  Fields  having  gro\vn  in  numbers  and  enthu- 
siasm, the  members  began  to  yearn  for  the  "real  thing."  The  Master  was 
only  too  ready,  cmd  during  the  autunm  of  1907  a  small  pack  was  kept  ex- 
clusively for  fox-hunting.  The  country  is  nearly  perfect  for  the  sport,  the 
coverts  being  small  and  scattered  widely,  and  the  open  country  behveen 
quite  ideal  for  riding  purposes,  being  mainly  a  grazing  country',  and  the  land- 
o\\Tiers,  a  very  good  class  and  fond  of  sport,  keeping  their  farms  and  fences 
in  the  best  of  condition.  Wire  has  not,  as  yet,  crept  into  the  country'  at  all 
and  the  fences  are  almost  entirely  old  post-2md-rails,  large  and  stiff,  but  with 
clean  tjike-off  and  landing. 

Foxes  are  none  too  plentiful,  but  many  have  been  planted  and  as  they 
have  thriven  well,  there  seems  to  be  no  reason  why  fox-hunting  should  not 
be  firmlv  established  and  excellent  sport  obtained  in  a  short  time.  The  hunts- 
mem,  Mr.  James  G.  Leiper,  Jr.,  is  a  keen  sportsmcm  and  may  be  depended 
upon  to  do  all  he  can  toward  attaining  the  best  results. 

The  Hunt  now  has  a  commodious  clubhouse,  stables  and  kennels,  and 
visitors  are  alwavs  most  welcome.  Most  of  the  members  have  a  strong  lean- 
in"  toward  the  thoroughbred  when  it  comes  to  a  question  of  mounts,  although 
there  is  a  small  percentage  of  cocktails  generally  to  be  seen. 


191 


The  Goose  with  the  Golden  Eggs 


The  Goose  with  the  Golden  Eggs 

A  Poem  by  J.  L.  R.,  published  in  "  The  History  of  the  Meynell  Hounds  and  Country." 

With  an  Enooi  by  A.  H.  H. 

We  lamed  the  nags,  we  maimed  the  men,  we  rolled  them  in  the  mire. 
We  killed  the  goose  with  golden  eggs  with  thrice-accursed  wire. 

{An  old  farmer  dozes  before  the  fire) 
Can  it  really  be  November  ?     Can  winter  have  begun  ? 
There's  the  usual  loss  of  verdure,  and  the  absence  of  the  sun ! 
Oh  yes,  there  are  the  common  signs !     But  one,  I  find,  we  lack  — 
The  huntsman's  horn,  the  cheering  cry,  the  music  of  the  pack. 
Oh,  dull  and  drear's  the  time  of  year  when  nothing  gives  relief 
From  the  settled  gloom  which  follows  the  falling  of  the  leaf ! 

Who  lamed  the  nags,  and  maimed  the  men,  and  rolled  them  in  the  mire  ? 

IVe  killed  the  goose  w^th  golden  eggs  with  thrice-accursed  wire. 

Oh,  what  were  trampled  pastures,  and,  oh,  what  was  damaged  wheat, 
Or  poultry  raised  and  fattened  which  the  foxes  used  to  eat? 
Oh,  what  were  broken  fences,  what  was  stock  all  gone  astray  ? 
Great  houses  bought  our  produce  then,  great  stables  used  our  hay. 
There  was  stir  and  animation,  the  country-side  was  gay 
With  all  the  pomp  and  glitter  and  pride  of  a  hunting  day ! 

Who  mangled  them,  and  tangled  them,  and  rolled  them  in  the  mire  ? 

We  killed  the  goose  with  golden  eggs  with  thrice-accursed  wire. 

The  halls  are  all  deserted  now  where  gentry  used  to  be. 
There's  no  one  left  but  t'  doctor,  and  t*  rector,  and  Hodge,  and  me ; 
There's  no  one  rides  about  the  land,  and  I  miss  the  friendly  nod 
I  got  on  hunting  mornings,  though  the  horse  hoofs  cut  the  sod. 
Though  many's  the  time  I've  grumbled,  yet  now  I  should  rejoice 
To  see  a  smiling  countenance  and  hear  a  cheery  voice. 

Who  lamed  the  nags,  and  maimed  the  men,  and  rolled  them  in  the  mire  ? 

We  killed  the  goose  with  golden  eggs  with  thrice-accursed  wire. 

195 


THE   GOOSE    WITH    THE   GOLDEN    EGGS 

There  are  tons  of  hay  uneaten  and  lying  in  the  mow ; 

Is  the  meadow  grass  worth  cutting  at  the  price  it  fetches  now  ? 

The  towns  are  full  of  loafing  men  who  used  to  earn  their  bread, 

All  idle  since  we  farmers  knocked  fox-hunting  on  the  head. 

The  blacksmith's  in  the  workhouse,  and  the  saddler's  ruined,  too ; 

We  little  thought  all  this  would  come  of  what  we  meant  to  do. 

Who  lamed  the  nags,  and  maimed  the  men,  and  rolled  them  in  the  mire, 
And  killed  the  goose  with  golden  eggs  with  thrice-accursed  wire. 

The  whippers-in  are  in  "  the  House,"  the  huntsman's  breaking  stones, 
The  doctor's  lost  the  goodly  job  of  setting  sportsmen's  bones. 
While  us  as  stays  must  pay  the  rates  —  there's  no  one  else  to  pay  — 
It's  twice  as  hard  upon  the  rest  now  they  have  gone  away. 
And  Parson  says  there's  no  one  now  to  help  the  poor  in  need. 
Dal !    All  the  World  looks  black  at  us  —  the  men  as  done  the  deed, 

As  lamed  the  nags,  and  maimed  the  men,  and  rolled  them  in  the  mire. 

And  killed  the  goose  with  golden  eggs  with  thrice-accursed  wire. 

The  Shires  are  quite  a  desert  now  the  Quality  has  fled ; 

Their  homes  are  still  and  silent  as  the  dwellings  of  the  dead. 

There  seems  a  blight  upon  the  land ;  accursed  be  the  day 

That  spoilt  their  sport,  that  robbed  the  land,  and  drove  their  wealth  away 

When  the  gold  they  spent  with  us  went  with  them  across  the  sea. 

Ah,  well,  t'was  our  own  doing ;  that's  as  plain  as  plain  can  be, 

Who  lamed  the  nags  and  maimed  the  men,  and  rolled  them  m  the  mire. 

And  killed  the  goose  with  golden  eggs  with  thrice-accursed  wire. 

Where  are  those  stalwart  riders  ?     Where  those  forms  of  winsome  grace  ? 

Gone  ?  Ay,  and  gone  forever !  Who  will  fill  the  vacant  place  ? 

They're  off  to  Pau  and  Zanzibar,  to  Paris  and  Peru, 

To  Nice  and  California  ;  there  was  nothmg  else  to  do. 

You  can't  expect  a  sportmg  race  to  stay  when  sport  is  dead ; 

They've  taken  flight,  and  with  them,  too.  Prosperity  has  fled. 

IVe  mangled  them,  and  tangled  them,  and  rolled  them  in  the  mire, 
And  killed  the  goose  with  golden  eggs  with  thrice-accursed  wire. 

196 


THE   GOOSE    WITH    THE   GOLDEN    EGGS 

(His  wife  rouses  him) 
What's  that  you  say  ?     "  It's  dinner  time  "  !     Did  I  doze  in  my  chair  ? 
My  word !  I've  had  an  awful  dream  —  a  regular  nightmare. 
I  dreamt  —  well,  never  mind,  old  girl  —  I  hear  the  huntsman's  horn  — 
There  —  see  the  pack  come  streaming  out  and  right  across  our  corn ! 
What's  that  you  say  ?  Put  wire  up  ?  Someone  might  get  a  fall : 
I'd  rather  they'd  ruin  every  crop  than  seem  so  mean  and  small ; 

/  mangle  them,  and  tangle  them,  and  roll  them  in  the  mire  ? 

No  I  /'//  not  kill  the  goose  with  golden  eggs  —  I'll  take  down  all  my  wire ! 


197 


Webster  Famiiy  Library  of  Veterinary  Medicine 
Cummings  Schoc!  of  Veterinary  Medicine  at 
Tufi:s  Univsrsrty 
200  Westboro  Road 
North  Grafton,  MA  01 536 


